Teaching Love
by BenslerFanatic
Summary: People come and go from your life, some stay longer than others and some have a bigger impact on you or others around you. They may be from 2 completely different worlds but are intertwined with the other through a special connection that may just change the future. How? You'll have to Read on to find out. AU E/O
1. Making a Change

**_A/N: Hello my lovely readers! So a new chapter of 'Returning For You' is coming your way within the next 24- 48 hours (most likely – just finishing editing). But as 'Keeping Secrets' is on hold till further notice, I decided that I would upload the first chapter of this new story for you all. This one is different to my others as it's AU, meaning that I'm going to be using the characters from the show we all know and love but not necessarily in the way we know them for. So please, read on and let me know what your thoughts are by leaving a review? This story practically is writing itself at the moment, which means there should be lots of updates often (*fingers crossed*). _**

**Chapter 1 – Making a Change**

Every day is a part of the major journey which is life and there is always something to learn from each day, the journey is always evolving. This was the motto that Olivia reminded herself almost every day and she felt more familiar with it more than anything, particularly in the classroom. As an elementary teacher, she was familiar with learning and how the world provided numerous opportunities for growth in your learning and creating the version of yourself that you really want to be. She had a class of 25 little humans, each with their own personalities and required different things from her as a teacher. There were moments in her days where she did question her career choice though and seriously thought she would have been better to choose a career that didn't require so much from her. But then again, there were days where she also had incredibly sweet conversations with children on the playground or something would happen, and she could see the difference that she makes in their lives. Deep down, Olivia knew that she could never do anything else and get quite so much happiness as teaching brings her. Teaching was her passion and Olivia really believed that it was something she had been born to do.

But outside of the classroom and her role as a teacher, there was a whole different side to Olivia, a side which most people weren't familiar with. In particular, they had no idea that she was a single mother. Olivia was only 28 years old but she was mother to a beautiful little girl, Chloe. Olivia absolutely adored her daughter and couldn't believe the fact that the little girl was already 1 and a half. It wouldn't be long now till Chloe turned 2 years old and whilst some parents really look forward to that time as they believe it is when their children really start to become little people with big personalities. Olivia on the other hand, didn't like how quickly time was passing and her little girl was growing up. Olivia adored being a mother and whilst she did have days where she wasn't entirely sure how she even survived working as a full-time teacher and raising a little girl, there was nothing she loved more than to come home to her little girl with a big smile on her face after a hard day. She loved the discussions she could have with Chloe about her day, with everything that she had got up to at daycare. Although the conversations weren't always understandable as Chloe was still learning how to put words together, it was Olivia's favourite time of day.

Being a single mother and a high-quality elementary school teacher had its challenges, especially in terms of the hours Olivia had to work and the hours she spent planning what she would teach her students. But Olivia had a brilliant support network established around her with close friends and the nanny Lucy. Whilst Chloe went to daycare every day, Olivia managed to get away from school early enough to pick her up most of the time, but there were occasions that Lucy had to pick the little girl up as Olivia had to stay longer at school to handle something or to attend later meetings. But on the days where Olivia could leave school early enough to pick up her daughter, they would often spend time together in the park, playing.

* * *

It was early Tuesday morning, Olivia had a rough start with Chloe this morning and had already sent a message to Lucy in warning for this afternoon. Olivia suspected that Chloe was coming down with something and thus if she wasn't feeling good this morning then she was going to be even worse this afternoon and Olivia had to stay back late at school to attend a meeting. Olivia had a new teaching student who was going to be starting on her class in a couple of days, so this afternoon they were having a meeting to start organizing what would happen over the first week in the classroom. Olivia had recently been recognized for her high-quality teaching and thus when the school was placed forward to take a final year teaching student for the remainder of the school year, Olivia had been asked to take her on. This is normally a stressful experience for the first couple of weeks and being at one of the most elite private schools in the state, there was more pressure on Olivia to ensure that this student didn't fail their placement. Teaching was a rather difficult profession but Olivia had a belief to take all the future teachers under her wing, guide them on their placement and send them out as the best teachers they could possibly be.

However, before the meeting this afternoon and once all the children had gone home, Olivia was planning on spending a bit of time working out what the next approach to get in contact with the parents from her class was. There was one particular family that she was desperately wanting to get in contact with and no one at the school had ever properly spoken with the family in the whole time the children had been at this school. Elizabeth Stabler, was a bright and lovely little girl, she was currently in Olivia's second grade class and would often be the one to contribute most in class discussions. Due to her helpfulness, Elizabeth had previously been referred to as the 'teachers assistant' and Olivia thought she had a pretty special connection with Elizabeth because of this. Olivia was fairly confident the connection that they had was the type of connection that if something was going on at home, or something was wrong then Elizabeth would often tell her about it. However, something Olivia wasn't particularly happy with was with how Elizabeth was falling behind in her reading and spelling.

She was falling behind in the same way that Olivia had seen happen numerous times before, as students who are behind in reading are usually behind in spelling too considering that both of these areas work with each other. Elizabeth was currently testing as reading at about a kindergarten level and she was currently about a month into 2nd grade. Olivia had spoken with the 1st grade teacher for Elizabeth as well as her twin brother, Richard's teacher and neither had ever been able to contact the family successfully about this. Richard was not as far behind at reading as Elizabeth was but he was still below where he currently should be. Olivia had supervised pick up numerous times with her class and the other 2nd grade class, she had seen the twins go home with a lady but had been told that it wasn't their mother. Elizabeth had in fact told Olivia that the woman was their nanny, 'Dani'.

None of the other teachers even knew what the twins' father actually looked like, apparently, he'd never been at any of the school events and the mother had stopped attending herself about a year and a half ago. Elizabeth had told Olivia that her father was super busy, he ran his own company in New York and they didn't see him much. She hadn't talked about her mother at all in the time that Olivia had known Elizabeth, so Olivia had her suspicions that her mother wasn't on the scene anymore. Olivia could tell that Elizabeth's father learly cared for her and her brother as he ensured they were constantly looked after. Their nanny, Dani seemed to be working all hours with both of the twins. But Olivia knew that his lack of presence in their life was also affecting them developmentally. Parental attention and involvement in their life, is important for any child and without it they can be greatly affected. Olivia could tell that one of the things that was being greatly affected by the lack of a parent, for Elizabeth, was her reading. Olivia suspected there was a lack of reading at home which was affecting her reading development. Olivia knew that from Elizabeth's test scores and the other kids in her classes test scores, she wasn't being read to at home and that was affecting her vocabulary development. Whilst Olivia made sure to read to her daughter, Chloe every night, even in the nights when she was tired and only wanted to sleep herself. She always made sure to spend time reading to Chloe every night before she went to sleep, as she knows how important this was for the little girl's development. Olivia had a determination to get in contact with Elizabeth's family and get them in for a meeting as she knew this issue simply couldn't wait. It would greatly affect Elizabeth later in her school if they kept ignoring such a problem.

* * *

Elliot Stabler sat in a large office, on the top floor of his building, working away at a few designs for his brand-new hotel, which was due to start being built in Florida in a couple of weeks. He was due to fly out next week, to be there for the ground breaking ceremony and organise the final few things before the actual building commenced._ Sapphire Suites _currently had locations in New York, Los Angeles, San Diego and Toronto. Aside from Florida, there were also plans to expand to more international locations, with hotels also currently being built in Tokyo, Paris and a 2nd one in Toronto. _Sapphire Suites _were one of the highest quality hotels that people are currently choose to stay in. Elliot was taking every opportunity to expand his business whilst things were so good for them. However, apart from being a successful business man, he was also a single father to twins. Elizabeth and Richard were almost 8 years old now and Elliot would do absolutely anything for them, everything he did career wise was to provide them with a life where they had everything they could ever want.

He wasn't the kind of father who would just give them anything though, he was the kind of father that would make them consider all the options when they wanted something or work for what they wanted rather than immediately get it. But there was nothing that he wouldn't give to them if they really wanted it and had considered everything in relation to it. He adored being a father and part of himself hated the amount of time that he had to work and spend away from them but he always strived to maintain that they were looked after. Dani, his nanny whom he had hired a couple of years ago was supposed to be one of the best there is. She made sure that his children got to every appointment or after school activity that they had, she made sure that they were in bed before he got home at night, including having had a bath or shower and completed their homework. He would really be lost without Dani, that was for sure.

It hadn't always been that way though. 2 years ago, it had been him, the twins and their mother Kathy, with absolutely no need for a nanny because Kathy had been there and would do everything with the children. She loved being a mother and one of the reasons that they had tried so long to fall pregnant was the fact that Kathy had really wanted to be a mother. However, kids had turned out to be harder than anyone expected and twins was definitely more of a challenge than a single child would be. Elizabeth and Richard had kept both Elliot and Kathy up at all hours across the night when they were young. Elliot had started to see the cracks with Kathy a while before they actually happened. In fact, he had seen her leaving the way that she did, long before it actually happened. But he hadn't really been in a place to stop it from happening at the time. Now, he was a single father with twins and a successful business.

But he knew that he wasn't giving his twins the attention that they deserved, there simply wasn't enough time in the day for that. His business required him to work long hours with the things that had to be done and he felt really guilty about this. He didn't even know how they were going academically or emotionally, he didn't have enough time to check in with his kids or make appointments with their teachers. That was something that had always been Kathy's domain and he'd not been able to follow through properly on that after she left. In fact, he found himself spending less and less time with the twins after she left but he couldn't help feel an immense amount of guilt in the way that she left and the fact that he really didn't try to stop her. But how do you stop someone who doesn't want to be a mother anymore yet as young kids who need her attention? Elliot knew that if it had been him that was to do this, the outcome would have been even worse.

* * *

During her hour release from teaching today, whilst her students had been doing music lessons, Olivia managed to write up a letter for Elizabeth's father. She'd checked the school records and seen that they didn't have a current email address or phone number for Elizabeth's parents, so she figured that a letter home would be best and she included information about providing them with a current phone number to call in case of emergency. Olivia had given Elizabeth the letter to put in her bag right before home time and instructed Elizabeth to make sure that her daddy got the letter as it was very important that he get it. Elizabeth said that she would try really hard to get the letter to him but she didn't know what time her daddy would be home tonight. Olivia decided that it would also be beneficial that she let whomever was collecting Elizabeth today, know about the letter to ensure that the letter made it to her father. In the letter itself, Olivia had asked that Mr or Mrs Stabler get in touch about a time that would suit for a meeting, as this was important to discuss Elizabeth's education face to face and put strategies in place to help with her reading. Olivia knew that if she tried to implement strategies with the nanny then it likely wouldn't work too well, she needed to get the parents on board first.

When the final bell of the school day rang, Olivia escorted her class outside and watched carefully as each of them were met by parents or guardians, ensuring that they were all safely collected and any that weren't were to stay by her. She made her way over to Dani once all the other children had been collected, who had already greeted Elizabeth when they came outside.  
"Miss Benson?" Dani greeted, clearly already familiar with who Olivia was.  
"Hi, I just wanted to come over and say that I gave Elizabeth a note today which her father or mother needs to see. She's told me that Mr Stabler might be home really late tonight and after she's in bed, so can you make sure that he or Mrs Stabler gets this letter?" Olivia tried to ask.  
"Mr Stabler is a very busy man and he does not have much spare time at home due to the requirements of his business. Whilst I can't guarantee that he will read the letter, I can try make sure he gets it" Dani explained.  
"Thank you, I understand but this is a very important letter" Olivia explained before bidding the group farewell. She watched as Elizabeth, Richard and Dani made their way out of the school playground. Olivia wasn't completely sure that the note would get to Elizabeth's father but she had done all she could for now. She just really hoped that Mr Stabler would take an interest in his child's education or perhaps Mrs Stabler would, even if the school hadn't seen her in a while.

**_A/N: Thoughts? Opinions? Something to tell me? Let me know in a review please :D  
Until Next time ;)_**


	2. Making Contact

**Chapter 2 – Making Contact**

It was a whole week before Olivia managed to get a response from Mr Stabler, through a letter. Elizabeth had told her the day after she'd sent the letter home, that Dani had made sure she placed it in his office but Elizabeth couldn't say whether he'd actually read it or not. There was no emergency contact for Mr or Mrs Stabler listed on the school system that she could see, other than for Dani and so other than the letter or word of mouth, Olivia had no way to reach out to Elizabeth's parents. However, the following Monday, Elizabeth had come straight into the classroom after the morning bell and said she had a letter for Olivia. Her father had placed it in her bag last night and given Olivia strict instructions to give it to Miss Benson this morning. Olivia thanked the little girl for the letter and placed it on her desk, she would read it shortly after they have commenced the morning activities.

However, it wasn't till recess that Olivia had actually had the time to sit down and rad the letter which had come back from Mr Stabler. Olivia was very relieved to hear that he would be able to attend a meeting, however the times for the meeting would be very limited as he was a busy man and was going to be heading out of state later that same week for about a week. Thankfully, he had also included in the letter, an appropriate contact number to be able to get in contact with him if it was required, so Olivia wouldn't necessarily have to send another note home with his daughter. However, Olivia thought that this would be best, just in case they couldn't get in touch over the phone.

_Dear Mr Stabler,_  
_Thank you for agreeing to meet with me sometime soon. I understand that you are in fact a very busy man with your business, particularly from all the stories about how hard you work which Elizabeth has shared with me. However, this meeting is of the upmost importance as it regards your daughter's education and her progress in her learning. What day are you due to fly out for work? I have time available almost every day for the rest of this week and can meet with you either before or after school. I will try and contact you over the phone soon but this letter is also coming home to you in case I am unable to reach you on the phone. Just let me know what time and day would suit you best and we can arrange something._

_Kindest Regards, _  
_Olivia Benson_

Olivia typed up the letter and placed it in another envelope for Elizabeth to take him. She would try the contact number which Mr Stabler had provided shortly, but she was unsure she would get an answer and she didn't quite have the flexibility to try this number numerous times when she was a teacher in a class full of lots of little people.

* * *

Elliot had been in a call already when Elizabeth's teacher had called him, his personal assistant had provided him the message after his call was over but he'd not be able to call back at that time He knew that she would be very busy considering she was his daughter's teacher and they had a lot of responsibility, just hoped that maybe they would be able to communicate some other way to get to the bottom of what was important with this meeting and his child.  
"Ashley, what is my schedule like this afternoon?" Elliot asked as she walked out of his office, he wanted to see if he could be there to pick up his children this afternoon and maybe catch Elizabeth's teacher. He had made a pact with himself recently that he couldn't simply sit by now and watch things play out. He needed to take a stand, to stop putting his business first but rather put his children first as they clearly needed him more than he thought. Elliot had read the twins reports from last year and they weren't as good as he had originally thought they were when he read them last year. Clearly, if there was the need for him to have a meeting with at least one of his children's teachers, then they weren't improving.  
"You have a meeting with the board for the new hotel development in half an hour but other than that you have no further appointments for today at the moment" Ashley, his personal assistant explained.

"Can you make sure that it stays that way? I need to pick up my kids from school and I won't be returning to the office today" Elliot requested, hoping that his afternoon would stay clear and he could go and deal with the issues at hand.  
"Will you be continuing to work on this from home sir?" Ashley clarified  
"I will be back in the office tomorrow before flying to Florida on Wednesday. When I leave later, you can take the rest of the afternoon off if you wish" Elliot explained, diverting the question about if he was going to work at home or not as he wasn't sure.  
"Thank you sir" Ashley responded before Elliot headed back into his office, to work on the plans for the new hotel before his meeting.

If everything went to plan then he was going to be able to collect his children from school and hopefully meet with Miss Benson about Elizabeth. Elliot had never met her before but he knew that as a teacher, she had really made a big impact on Elizabeth so far this year. School had only really begun about a month ago but Elizabeth had been excited since day 1 of the school year, when she found out she would have Miss Benson. In a way, her teacher was giving Elizabeth a drive to get to school every day. The same couldn't be said for Richard and his relationship with his teacher, but he seemed to be happy none the less. The more he thought about it, Elliot was really looking forward to meeting the woman who'd had such a big impact on his daughter and was clearly determined to meet with him about her education.

* * *

Olivia walked with her class, out of the exit to the school building and instantly, Mandy, who was the teacher for the other 2nd grade class came over to her.  
"Mystery Dad is here" Mandy greeted Olivia as Olivia tried to focus on matching kids with their parents.  
"Mystery dad?" Clara, the teaching student who was on Olivia's class this year, enquired.  
"The dad for the twins in your and my class, whom no one at this school has ever seen. He's here today though, look at where Elizabeth heads off to and you'll see him" Mandy explained and sure enough, as Elizabeth was heading towards a parent, she meets up with a tall man who instantly bends to scoop her in his arms. There are numerous similiarities in the features of the pair, so Olivia knows this is Elizabeth's father. Olivia smiles at the sweet moment but is quick to look away when both Elizabeth and her father look over towards Olivia's direction.

"How did you get him here?" Clara asked, she had heard the stories about him in the staff room before.  
"I didn't, I sent a letter home with Elizabeth about a week ago and managed to hear back from him today but we'd not set a direct time to meet yet so he can't be here for me" Olivia tried to explain.  
"Well he's walking right in this direction." Mandy exclaimed before walking away from the group again, leaving Olivai to handle this interaction on her own. Clara was quick to make her exit as well, instead saying something about organising the pick up of the last few students in the class. Olivia started to head back to the classroom once Clara had the last few students under control and didn't obviously need her to stay.

* * *

However, it was once she was back in the classroom, that she saw Elizabeth come running in again, pulling her father along behind her and Richard too.  
"Miss Benson, Miss Benson, daddy's here!" Elizabeth exclaimed as Olivia looked away from her desk to the group that was now in her doorway.  
"I can see that, what a nice surprise" Olivia replied, she could clearly see the impact that having her father here, was having on the little girl.  
"Daddy said he's here to meet wit you? But I didn give him the new letter yet" Elizabeth tried to explain and Olivia could tell she was confused over all of this.  
"That's ok sweetheart, I can meet with your daddy now, but can you and your brother just wait outside for me please? I promise we won't be too long" Olivia asked, to which Elizabeth nodded and ran off out of the classroom with Richard in tow, the mention of something about a ball game or the like to keep them entertained. Olivia motioned for Elliot to take a seat, whilst she took a seat behind her desk, grabbing out the folder which had work Elizabeth had done. Olivia hadn't planned in meeting with Elliot right now so she was a little under-prepared for this but at least he was here now.

"Firstly, thank you for coming to meet with me Mr Stabler. I want to start by saying that Elizabeth is an absolute pleasure in the classroom and a very loved member of our class" Olivia started.  
"Please, call me Elliot. My children's education is the upmost importance to me so if there is something wrong with Elizabeth or her learning then I'd like to get ahead of it if I can and support her where I can" Elliot replied and smiled softly at Olivia.  
"Well it's a good thing that you are here now as unfortunately Elizabeth isn't progressing quite as well as we would have liked. Particularly in her reading and spelling. This is the recent reading assessment I did with her" Olivia explained, as she handed him the page with the results and markings from her reading assessment that Olivia did with Elizabeth last week.  
"So, you can ignore the little symbols but basically she is unfamiliar with a lot of the most common words that children of her age should be confident with. She is currently reading at about a kindergarten level but this is 2nd grade and that is raising some concerns" Olivia continued to explain.  
"Wow, I had no idea it was this bad" Elliot remarked, shocked to hear about how poorly his daughter was reading.  
"Do you read at home with them? Does Mrs Stabler?"  
"There is no Mrs Stabler and I must admit I don't read with them most of the time, I often don't get home till after they are already in bed but my nanny says she always reads to them before bed" Elliot explained, feeling slightly guilty with how things were with his daughter.

Olivia was shocked that there was no Mrs Stabler on the scene. She didn't want to pry but if there was no Mrs Stabler then it would make sense to the rumours the teachers had been discussing about the family. Especially as this was one of the first times that Elliot had even come to the school, taking an interest in the education of his children. But part of her also felt really sorry for Elizabeth and her brother, growing up without a mother is hard. Olivia could speak from experience about this, she had lost her mother at a very young age and gone into foster care for numerous years. However, she had eventually been lucky and been adopted by a lovely man whom she now knew as her father, whom she was really grateful for. But growing up without a mother was hard for anyone and to think that there were kids in her class that were going through that as well, was hard. Despite a horrible relationship leading to her falling pregnant with Chloe, Olivia was never going to abandon her role as a mother or her little girl, if she had any control over it and she was grateful for her daughter.

"Mr Stabler, research shows that reading each night to your children has significant benefits to their education and their learning. The familiarity with books and reading as well as listening audibly to someone reading, can really help student development. Whilst it's not the sole reason that Elizabeth may be struggling, the lack of reading at home is definitely contributing" Olivia said before she went on to explain the different options which were offered at the school to support students. Olivia explained that they could get Elizabeth the additional assistance with his permission. She provided Elliot the relevant information and Elliot instantly agreed, there was nothing that he wouldn't do for his children. At the end of the meeting, he was actually grateful that they had made a meeting like this and he made a mental note to try and get a meeting with Richard's teacher too. Elliot knew that if Elizabeth was struggling at school, it was likely that Richard was as well.

Olivia sat at the kitchen table, next to Chloe in her high chair, who was currently trying to eat dinner. Olivia had been later home from school than she had expected so Lucy had picked Chloe up from daycare but Olivia had made sure to be home in time for dinner. Olivia wasn't saying anything, she was just enjoying watching her little girl and thinking about how lucky she was to have Chloe. Chloe had brought a huge change to Olivia's life, even from before she was born. The little girl had brought the desperate measures Olivia needed, to get out of the relationship she had been in, and make a change with her life, Olivia had a new purpose to be living for when she had found out she was pregnant, she had someone now who was depending on her to survive. Chloe, even though she was now only 18 months old, had completely changed Olivia's life and it was all for the better.

_**A/N: Thank you for all your beautiful reviews on the first chapter, and i hope you have liked this one. Like i mentioned previously, this story is currently writing itself and i can't seem to put it down. So hopefully that means there should be frequent updates for you all. I do work though and so some updates might be slower than others. However, let me know your thoughts on this chapter by leaving a review! I read each and every review that is left and appreciate all the feedback which you give.  
Until next time ;)**_


	3. Feeling Blue

_**A/N: Thank you all for your reviews, I really appreciate all the feedback which is given. Please don't be afraid to question something or explain something that I may do that you don't like or thing reads weird. I spend so long writing and editing that I don't always pick up on things that might not work or things which could change for the future. So please, if you feel a particular way about the story, let me know or if you think I should change something then let me know. I would much rather know and you continue to enjoy the story than not. So please feel free to tell me whether it is you put it in the review or if you would like to msg me privately about it, my inbox is always open.**_

_**Now, in this chapter we get a bit of a look into the background Olivia has come from and gives you an insight into certain things. However, I feel like there should be a trigger warning now, as there is mentions of domestic violence and abuse, which are going to recur in this story. I understand this is a sensitive issue and please feel if you at any stage feel upset or distressed over this, then I urge you to reach out to the relevant support networks wherever you live. I also want you to know, if this makes you uncomfortable and you have to skip this chapter or this story all together, then I completely understand.**_

**Chapter 3 - Feeling Blue**

Before Olivia fell pregnant with Chloe, moved to New York and started a whole new life, she lived in Northern Nebraska, in a small town with her then fiance Brian Cassidy. They had moved to this small town from Omaha where her father lived, so that Brian could pursue what was then going to be a promising career opportunity. However, things hadn't exactly gone the way that they may have planned it all to go when they had planned the move. Whilst Brian had promised Olivia that this move would be the perfect start to their life together, it turned out to be a perfect start for him but not for Olivia. She was working as a teacher's aide, trying to study online and not really enjoying the so called 'small town life'. Brian was hardly home, and he'd started to mix with a few friends whom she was less than fond of. Looking back on it all now, Brian's friends that he had connected with in this same small town, had been the ones that lead Brian to developing a serious drug and alcohol problem which had led to him being so aggressive.

_FLASHBACK_

_Olivia stood, dressed in her typical work clothes, by the stove making dinner. She knew Brian would be home any minute, he'd been out for drinks with his work colleagues but would expect that there be dinner on the table when he got home. Olivia knew that if he'd been out with his friends and she didn't have food ready for him by the time that he got home, she was going to experience the result of this frustration, and she really didn't want that. Olivia couldn't take another beating like last time, her bruising on her face had only just done down enough that she didn't have to wear excessive make up to hide it. She really didn't want to go backwards and have to continue to act like nothing was wrong with everyone at school. _

"_Honey, I'm ho-ome" Brian slurred as he came in through the front door. He stumbled through the front door, almost banging into the wall numerous times as he made his way to the kitchen. Olivia could smell the cigarette smoke on him before he even entered the room, she knew that he had been smoking tonight as well as drinking. She didn't have to look up when he came into the kitchen to know that he was coming closer to her, she could simply hear his footsteps behind her._  
_"Mmm, something smells great" Brian said as he leant in from behind her._  
_"Well I've made your favourite, so why don't you go clean up whilst I finish it off" Olivia suggested but Brian had other ideas, his hands were on her waist, heading in the direction of her skirt and his lips were devouring her neck._  
_"I wasn't talking about the food"_  
_"Brian, not now. You're drunk" Olivia tried to squirm out of Brian's arms, the alcohol was strong on his breath._  
_"And with an hot woman" He continued to try and seduce her, his arms tightening around her waist and Olivia knew she couldn't overpower him. Olivia also knew she didn't want it to go any further, but if she rejected him then it would be her face that went through the door._  
_"Bri" Olivia said as she placed her hands on his arms, trying to get him to loosen up._  
_"Come on baby, turn down the stove and we'll come back to dinner. I want to see what you are hiding underneath all this" Brian whispered as he continued to attack her neck, he wasn't in the mood for food he just wanted his wife and he wanted her now._

_END FLASHBACK_

Olivia shot up, turned on the lamp and looked around the room whilst she tried to get her breath back. _It was just a dream, he's not here, he can't hurt you _Olivia tried to remind herself and lower her racing heartbeat. She'd had another nightmare about Brian. Tonight, was the third one this week, they had occurred almost every night sine she'd had the meeting with Elliot. Olivia didn't understand the reasoning behind the reoccurring nightmares or what Elliot had even done to cause them but she deeply wished they would stop. She'd left Brian as soon as she found out she was pregnant with Chloe and never looked back. She'd got out right after one final beating, which resulted in two broken ribs for her. _You left for Chloe and he's never coming near you _Olivia continued to think to herself. Brian was in prison and he would be there for at least another year before he was eligible to appeal. She'd been the one to put him there after her father had been so passionate about getting him arrested for what he'd done. Brian had absolutely no parental rights to Chloe, she didn't even think he knew about her and Olivia would do everything in her power to keep it that way. She took a couple of deep breaths, climbed out of bed and headed towards Chloe's room. She did this after every nightmare, it brought her comfort and re-affirmed her dedication to putting Chloe first.

Olivia found Chloe fast asleep in her bed, which was a half crib half toddler style bed that was perfect for Chloe. She took a seat on the floor right by the bed and just sat, watching the little girl sleep. She needed to do this to calm down, redirect her thoughts and get everything back under control. Chloe was her little miracle and the little girl meant the entire world to Olivia, especially after everything that she'd been through to get to this point. _He's never coming anywhere near you, I won't let him _Olivia whispered as she placed a soft kiss on the little girl's forehead.

* * *

Despite the bad night sleep, Olivia still managed to get up and be functioning enough to get Chloe ready for another day at daycare. She managed to shower and get dressed before Chloe was up and then they had breakfast together before Olivia got Chloe dressed and packed for the day. Olivia was planning to stop and grab a coffee after dropping Chloe at daycare, on her way to school. Today would be a day that she clearly needed the extra caffeine to be able to teach her students well and manage all the extra things she had to get done today. Clara would be teaching a few of the lessons today which would give Olivia extra time, whilst still being in the classroom. But Olivia could still feel that today was going to be a long day without caffeine, so the coffee stop would be an important step on her way to school.

"Daisy come?" Chloe asked as she walked over to her bag that was sitting on the couch from where she had been sitting playing. Daisy, was her toy dog and Chloe was obsessed with this toy. She rarely left the house without it and if she did leave the house without daisy, she would have a meltdown when she realized she had done so. Daisy was the first toy that Chloe had ever received and so Olivia was hesitant to let the little girl take such a special toy to daycare. She hated the thought that something could happen with Daisy at daycare and then Chloe would get upset. However, she wasn't prepared for a huge fight today.  
"Are you sure you want to take her? What if the other kids play with her?" Olivia tried to coax the little girl into leaving Daisy at home.  
"Daisy mine" Chloe argued, hugging the toy close.  
"But if you take her to daycare then other kids might want to play with her too. Are you sure you would want that? You'd have to share her" Olivia tried to explain, and Chloe shook her head. Olivia knew that her little girl wasn't great at sharing and as Daisy was really special, there was a severe risk something could happen.  
"Daisy stay home" Chloe agreed, half ordering the dog around and half explaining that she wasn't going to take the toy with her. She placed the dog on the couch and went over to her mother.  
"She'll be here waiting for you when you get back. You can tell her all the stories about what you did today" Olivia continued to coax the little girl, placing a few extra things in her backpack so she was ready for the day. They had minutes to spare before they had to leave if Olivia was going to manage to get to school before the bell rang.

* * *

Elizabeth Stabler was usually one of the first children into the classroom every morning, she was usually quite the little ray of light in Olivia's class. But this morning that was simply not the case, in fact Olivia hadn't even laid eyes on the little girl before the morning bell, which was unusual. She knew that Elizabeth's father, Elliot had been away from business and she believed that he hadn't returned yet. Olivia knew that maybe this was the reason for Elizabeth being out of sorts, or maybe there was something else going on. Olivia decided that the best way to get to the bottom of it was simply to conference with Elizabeth and discuss what she was feeling right now. A part of Olivia's teaching philosophy was that feelings were important, and she wanted the kind of relationship with her students where they felt they could trust her with their feelings. She also had the strong belief that if they shared with her what was going on, then together they would be able to able to work out a solution to the problem and resolve issues which may be happening.

Olivia didn't have a proper chance to talk with Elizabeth one on one during the morning session, but she could tell that something with the little girl was wrong. The personality that the little girl usually showed, wasn't there today and she was very disengaged from everything in the classroom. Clara was going to do some teaching after recess and whilst Olivia had planned to get some other work done during that time as Clara didn't really need her, she now had the plan to see if Elizabeth was ok during this time.

"What's up with Lizzie today?" Clara asked, as she grabbed her things for recess.  
"I'm not sure" Olivia replied.  
"But there is definitely something different today? Like you can see it too?" Clara asked to which Olivia nodded. She had spotted it and it showed good observation skills and knowledge of her students if Clara had spotted it too.  
"When I had the meeting with her father recently, he had mentioned that he was going away from home for a bit on a business trip. He didn't say how long he would be gone for though and it makes me wonder if her behaviour today has something to do with his absence. I wonder if her brother, Richard is the same?" Olivia tried questioning. She made a mental note to check in with Mandy during this break to see if Richard was displaying any of the same behaviour that Elizabeth was.

* * *

During recess, Olivia checked with Mandy about Richard and she had explained that he was a perfectly happy kid today. He had even given a presentation about what they did on the weekend and he hadn't said anything that should raise a particular concern or explain Elizabeth's behaviour today. As the class was coming into the classroom at the end of recess, Olivia took Elizabeth aside and discussed that they were going to have a little chat. They took a seat up the back of the classroom, in the designated quiet corner and allowed the other children to keep learning with Clara.  
"Why are we sitting here?" Elizabeth asked, wanting to know what was going to be different for her now that she had been taken aside from her peers.  
"We're just going to have a little chat" Olivia explained.  
"Why?"  
"Because I'm worried about you, are you feeling ok today?" Olivia asked and Elizabeth just shrugged, clearly trying to avoid the questions.  
"What's going on Lizzie? You seem a little blue today?" Olivia coaxed again, hoping that this was the best way to get the information out of the little girl about what was going on. Elizabeth remained silent.

"I miss daddy" Elizabeth finally spoke up and Olivia felt her heart ache a little, she had figured this was the case and the little girl was simply blue because she was feeling sad about her dad being away.  
"He's still away isn't he?" Olivia clarified  
"He was 'sposed to be back tomorrow but Dani said dis morning that he won't be back till next weekend" Elizabeth explained. Olivia knew personally that sometimes businesses required a longer trip than expected but she was a little confused by this news coming from the nanny to Elizabeth and not Elliot. It was Wednesday now and so that meant instead of there only being one more day before she would see her father, Elizabeth now had to wait 3-4 more days depending when on the weekend he got back.  
"Have you spoken with your daddy whilst he's been away?" Olivia asked but Elizabeth just shook her head. Parents had a huge influence over their children's lives and so Olivia wasn't the least bit surprised that the little girl was feeling a little blue now that her father had been gone a while and they hadn't even spoken with him.  
"Dani let Dickie speak with daddy but she said I'd not been good enough, so I couldn't speak with him till I was good again. But I don't know what I did wrong? Dani wouldn't let me come with them on the weekend either when they went out, I had to stay at home with Bertie" Elizabeth explained, Olivia really didn't like what she was hearing.

_**A/N: Thoughts? Looks like things in the Stabler household aren't all as they seem and maybe it's to do with the nanny? Next chapter we look more into this. But for now, please let me know what you thought of this chapter by leaving a review? Until next time ;D **_


	4. All is Not Right

**Chapter 4 – All is Not Right**

Olivia had to admit that she was a little concerned with the things that Elizabeth had been telling her, about why she was feeling so blue. Elizabeth had just confessed that she had been told by the nanny that her father wasn't coming home for a few more days, even though she'd told the kids originally that he'd be home tomorrow night. Elizabeth had also confessed that she didn't even get to speak with her father, because the babysitter had said that she hadn't been good, yet she wasn't given an explanation on what she had done wrong at the time.

"Well, that's not nice. Did you try asking Dani about what you did wrong?" Olivia asked, wanting to try and get more information about what was going on from the little girl's perspective.  
"Yeah and she not tell me bout it...She doesn't talk to me much and makes me work" Elizabeth explained and Olivia just wanted to hug this precious little girl, because everything sounds truly horrible. There was definitely signs here to point out that things at home were not good but Olivia was currently trying to work out where the line was to make sure she didn't cross it in this situation. But there was also a part of Olivia that just wanted to find out what had gone on and what she could do to make things better in this situation, Elizabeth was usually such a bright and bubbly little girl.  
"Hmm, well that doesn't sound very nice at all. But I'm sure it's not really as bad as you think" Olivia replied, and Elizabeth wasn't going to agree in this situation.  
"It is! Dani reads with Dickie every night and she gives him dessert when he doesn't even finish his dinner. But she doesn't help me with my reading and she never gets me dessert, even when I finish all my dinner and extras. I too small to get it myself from the fridge" Elizabeth complained.  
"Maybe I'll have a talk with Dani this afternoon, is she picking you up?" Olivia asked and Elizabeth nodded. Olivia finished noting down what had happened during the discussion and would make a mental note to see if there was an email or something that she could use to contact Elliot on again rather than sending another letter. It really sounded like his daughter was wanting to speak with him sooner rather than later.

During the lunch break, Olivia provided Elizabeth with the opportunity to write a letter to her dad or simply draw him a picture and make a card. Olivia had found an email address that was actually listed in the school systems for the Stabler children and so she planned to get in contact with Elliot and attaching the card or letter to the email which she sent to Elliot. She would also then ensure to keep it safely in the classroom till Elliot was home again. Olivia felt something was really wrong with Dani and but she didn't have enough evidence to prove it or really wasn't sure if it was something too major going on. Whilst she hated that there were definite signs of favoritism from Dani, there wasn't a lot that Olivia could do about it at this stage. Favoritism, as much as it was horrible and Olivia wished it wasn't, was part of life and Dani wasn't completely neglecting Elizabeth. However, Olivia definitely intended to keep an eye on it for a while though and try to check in with Elizabeth each day to see how she's going, more so whilst her father is away like this than when he's around. Elizabeth was such a lovely little girl and Olivia honestly adored her but she hated that she was feeling so blue at the moment with everything.

* * *

Clara had been in charge of the dismissal of all the students, so that gave Olivia the chance to try and talk with Elizabeth's nanny. She walked over to Dani with Elizabeth, who was much better than this morning and that was soley down to the work of Clara and Olivia with checking in on her. Olivia had the beautiful card which Elizabeth had created at lunch, sitting in her top drawer of her desk, she would keep it there until Elliot was definitely back, as Elizabeth thought that was the best thing, she didn't want Dani to get it.  
"Miss Benson" Dickie called out as he spotted Olivia and Elizabeth walking up, he rushed right over to give her a hug and then walked back to Dani with Elizabeth and Olivia. Dani was standing, looking rather bored out of her mind but waiting for the kids.  
"How are you Dickie? Mrs Taylor told me that you got almost _all _of your sight words right this week on the first try. Good work buddy" Olivia encouraged.  
"Thanks, Dani and me been working really hard on dem"  
"Well it is definitely showing, so keep it up" Olivia replied, she had a good rapport with both twins and often found herself talking to Dickie as well as Elizabeth during the day at school. Both were great kids and adored their father to bits.

"You must be Dani, the nanny?" Olivia asked the woman.  
"I am" Dani responded, giving a look of question to Olivia but also of lack of care.  
"Elizabeth has told me so much about you" Olivia continued.  
"Really? Whatever she said isn't true, the little girl likes to lie – a lot" Dani responded, and Olivia knew this was not the case. Elizabeth had a personal belief in telling the truth and Olivia didn't want the girl hearing what was needed to be said.  
"No I don't!" Elizabeth tried to argue back but Dani gave her a firm look.  
"Hey Lizzie, Dickie, why don't you go and play for a bit whilst I have a talk with Dani. We won't be long" Olivia replied, she knew she would never get anything out of Dani when the twins were around and so she knew she had to get them away and she could properly investigate.

"Is something wrong?" Dani asked, once the twins were out of hearing distance.  
"How's it going with those two at home? Elizabeth told me that you were the one in charge of looking after them whilst their father is away?' Olivia started the conversation, wanting to take things almost a step at a time to see what she could find out from Dani right now.  
"It's good, it's almost normal for me to be there with them all the time now, considering I do it so often. They know me and I know them very well and then I report back to Mr Stabler regularly about them both. He really likes to check in whilst he's away on business, it's kind of like he depends on me" Dani replied to which Olivia just smiled.  
"Have they spoken to their dad whilst he's been away? I know they must be missing him and if he's calling them, maybe they've spoken to him" Olivia asked.  
"Richard has, Elizabeth was already asleep when he called the other night, and we've not been able to have a time where she's spoken to him just yet but I've always told her what Mr Stabler has asked me to pass on. He has extended his trip a couple of days though, so he won't be back till the end of the week" Dani explained and Olivia nodded. There was some very interesting underlying information being shared here that she was sure Dani didn't know she already knew about.

"Well I suppose I better be getting them home, we've got to get some stuff done this afternoon before Elizabeth's dance lessons" Dani continued, as if she was making a move to end the conversation, which she really had every right to do.  
"Alright, well thank you for talking with me. Can you do me a favour though? Make sure to keep up the reading at home with Elizabeth as she is really starting to make progress and we wouldn't want her to suffer before her dad's not here at the moment" Olivia said before she turned back towards the school building, she had an email to write.

* * *

The next morning, Elliot was sitting at the hotel breakfast restaurant, finishing off his buffet breakfast selection whilst reviewing emails on his phone. He saw he had a new email from an _Olivia Benson_. The only Benson that he knew was Elizabeth's teacher and from the subject line 'Elizabeth Stabler Concerns', it was clear that this was the same person and there was something going on back home. He quickly opened the email and started to read.

_Dear Mr Stabler,  
This is Elizabeth's teacher, Miss Benson writing to you. I found your email address in the school records and it was the only method of contact, but what I have to discuss is urgent. I understand that you are a very busy man and you are currently away on a business trip but there is a matter of urgency that I have to bring to your attention. It involves your daughter, Elizabeth and your current nanny, who I believe is called Dani. Elizabeth came into school today, rather upset and nothing like her usual bubbly personality that we absolutely adore in the classroom. She was very distant from everyone, and not the usual bright and cheery little class member that we see. This raised a few concerns by people about what was going on as it was unusual to see such a big change in her. I had a takl with her before lunch today and she mentioned that she had been told by Dani that you have extended your business trip for several days, which made her feel sad. She also informed me that whilst you had called them, Dani had not let her speak to you, as apparently she didn't deserve to, which made her quite upset. She also has apparently not done any reading at home whilst you have been away, Dani only reads with Richard and she never gets dessert either. Now, some of these things, I may be crossing a line with in regards to discussing it with you like this but the reading is where I'm most concern as she has been trying so hard and made such progress recently._

_Elizabeth made you a card today, as a way to help process how she was feeling, she made it with our teaching student Clara at lunch and I've kept this in the classroom. Elizabeth was concerned it would be taken by Dani if she brought it home when you weren't there. But I have taken a photo and you can see it as an attachment to this email. I apologise again for this email if it's an inconvenience but I wanted to bring this to your attention as soon as possible and I apologise if I have in any way crossed the line. But as your daughter's teacher, her education and wellbeing are my concern. _

_I hope you enjoy the remainder of your trip and thanks for your time,  
Olivia Benson_

Elliot was shocked, he couldn't quite believe the things that he was currently reading within this email and what apparently Elizabeth had confided in Olivia. When he called the other day to speak with Elizabeth and Richard, he was told by Dani that Elizabeth was not currently home, he had no idea that she had in fact been there the entire time. He also had only extended his trip by one day, he would be home the following day and it was looking like he would need to be the one to pick the twins up from school then. He was going to have quite the chat with Elizabeth then about what was going on, he wanted to hear from his daughter what had happened before he took it any further.

He knew that Elizabeth knew the difference between right and wrong, so she wouldn't just tell a lie, but he wanted to find out what was going on behind all of this. If there were serious issues with the nanny then he would simply find them a new one, he wanted his children to be as happy as they could be and he had placed that as the most important thing to him. Elliot wasn't sure if he should respond to the email or wait to discuss this further with Olivia in person when he got home. But after careful consideration, Elliot figured it would be better to respond to the email, to at least let Olivia know that he had read it and he was definitely going to be taking follow up action on it. He didn't want to be seen as an 'absentee parent' anymore, he wanted to take an influence over his kids' lives now, he wanted to make sure that they were getting the best opportunities where possible. Elliot knew now that if he didn't make a stand for them, no one else really would and he had sat by just expecting someone else to look out for his children, for too long.

_Dear Olivia, _  
_Thank you for your email and for bringing this matter to my attention. I had no idea that all of this was going on at home. You are correct in the mention that I have extended my trip to Florida for work, but not for multiple days, only for 1 more day and I will be home early tomorrow afternoon. I will make sure to be the one to pick up my kids from school then too. You are also correct in the fact that I had called my children to speak with them about extending the trip slightly and just checking in with them, however when I did I was told that Elizabeth was out at a friends place. I had no idea that she was there all along and simply hadn't been allowed to talk to me. I will definitely be investigating this further when I get home from this trip and I really look forward to seeing this card in person when I return as I love this photo of it._  
_Thank you for taking such an interest in the welfare and well-being of my children, I am very grateful for the extra eyes in this situation._

_Kindest Regards, _  
_Elliot Stabler_

Elliot clicked send to the email, closed his phone and made his way to the conference rooms in the ground floor of the building. He would be spending the next several hours in meetings which he had to have about this new hotel development they were currently in the process of commencing to build, which was the whole reason for his trip now.

_**A/N: Well looks like Elliot has been brought into the situation now? Maybe all is not right with the Nanny? Or maybe it's just Elizabeth being overly jealous of her twin brother? Hmmm so many questions. But you'll have to wait for the next chapter to see where this heads next.  
I just want to say thank you for all of you who are reading this story and leave reviews, i value all of your feedback and everything you say about the story or my writing. Often the feedback you give, can bring to my attention things that i didn't even know i was/ wasn't doing so I do take all of it on board and try and make changes where i might need to.  
Let me know what you thought of this chapter in the reviews and hopefully, i'll have another update for you soon :)  
Until Next Time ;)**_


	5. Lost Cause

_**A/N: Thank you again for all the reviews on the previous chapter. Glad to see that so many of your are enjoying it and welcome to all the new readers to this story, I hope you are enjoying it with every new chapter. I just want to say, this story is going to be a slow burn type story, the way I want to build the relationship between Elliot and Olivia as well as any particular influence of other characters, will be a slow build up. But i expect this to be a long story anyway. However, I do hope that I do this justice and that you'll stick with it :D But without further ado, please enjoy this new chapter and as always, leave me a review with your thoughts at the end, I love reading them all. If you have any questions at any stage, my inbox is always open and feel free to message me. But until next time ;)**_

**Chapter 5 – Lost Cause**

Elizabeth Stabler was sitting at the dining room table, working on her homework for the day, she had been given extra spelling work to try and help with learning to sound out words. Whilst Dani was supposed to help her with this work, she was currently trying to work it all out for herself as Dani was upstairs helping Dickie. Beatrice, the housekeeper walked into the dining room and found Elizabeth struggling with a few of her words. She stood watching the little girl for a few minutes and wondered where Dani was right now, she wondered why she wasn't helping Elizabeth right now.  
"Sh-e-ll…shell" Elizabeth read out loud before managing to copy down the word from her list again. Beatrice had cared for the twins exclusively since they had been born and had been around a lot as they were learning. She knew how much Elizabeth had been struggling but was glad that she was getting the help she needed at school now. Beatrice was impressed with how hard the little girl is currently trying and she took a seat at the table next to Elizabeth.  
"Hey Bertie" Elizabeth greeted, as she looked up to see who had sat next to her.  
"Hey little one, want to read your words to me?" Beatrice asked, she really took a special shining to Elizabeth lately when she had noted that the little girl had been kind of left out of everything with Dani and Richard. Beatrice was 65 and had 2 granddaughters around Elizabeth's age, and so she was very good with the little girl.

* * *

Dani had come downstairs from helping Richard with his reading and writing upstairs in his room, she wanted to check that Lizzie was working on her homework and not causing issues. She was the same age as Richard but she was falling behind more than Richard was. Dani didn't see the point in helping Lizzie when she was already struggling so much with her learning, when she could help Dickie to stop him from falling any further behind. The younger boy had a lot of potential and Dani believed he could go far if he was supported properly. Dani didn't understand why Bertie was even trying to help Elizabeth at the moment when there was a million other things to be done right now by the older woman. Elliot stabler would be getting home tomorrow and the last thing anyone wanted was for him to return to the house with the current state it's in. Elliot had placed Dani in charge of things before he went away and Dani really wanted to impress him when he got back. She wanted him to see the amazing job that she did for him when he was away and hopefully earn herself a little more respect from the man.

"Mrs Davis, don't you have other things you should really be doing at the moment? More than helping Elizabeth?" Dani asked as she walked into the dining room and interrupting the pair. Bertie flinched when she came in and could tell that things weren't great for the little girl right about now.  
"I'm simply helping her with her homework, education is important" Bertie replied.  
"And Mr Stabler gets home tomorrow, I would simply hate to explain that you're the reason that this house is not looking the best because you haven't done your job.  
"Bertie is helping me get good at my spelling, as you helping Dickie" Elizabeth defended.  
"Lizzie, you don't need anyone to help you with it, you're not going to get better – you're a lost cause" Dani replied and Bertie was not happy with this.  
"You can't speak to her like that" Bertie spoke up, she was not going to let anyone speak to such a cute little girl so rudely  
"Mrs Davis, go back to your jobs, I'm here in charge of the children and I will say what goes. I would simply hate for you to be fired for such a lack of work" dani argued back and Bertie almost wanted to fight back. She knew that her position in this household was fairly comfortable and she wasn't going anywhere, as Elliot had often thanked her in person for her hard work around the house and supporting his kids and would show appreciation where he could. But instead, she knew that this battle wasn't one to have and simply got up from the dining table and made her way out of the room. She apologised to Elizabeth as she was leaving but Elizabeth simply said she understood, and everything was ok. Once Bertie had left the room, Dani did too, leaving Elizabeth all alone. Elizabeth wasn't entirely sure what a 'lost cause' was but it didn't sound like something that she wanted to be. Elizabeth would have to ask Miss Benson tomorrow. _Miss Benson knows everything, she'll help me _Elizabeth thought to herself as she tried to work out the next word on her homework.

* * *

Olivia sat in a chair, next to Chloe's high chair where she was currently enjoying dinner very much. The little girl was mashing it all together before trying to fit it in her mouth, which made Olivia laugh at the way this was all done.  
"You sure love to make a mess here, don't you" Olivia commented as she watched Chloe take another handful of dinner.  
"I am going to have to teach you some manners soon though little one, you can't always eat with your hands" Olivia said as Chloe was simply too wrapped in dinner to be able to communicate with her mother. It was moments like this that she loved with her little girl and it was like they were in their own little world. Teaching meant that there was a lot of time that Olivia was away from Chloe, but she tried to make it up where possible. However, it was moments like this that really made Olivia think about different students in her class. Tonight, her thoughts drifted to Elizabeth and everything that the girl had said earlier today. She was such a precious little girl and Olivia felt incredibly lucky that the girl was in her class, but the way things were sounding at home, things really weren't great for her outside of the classroom. Particularly, when it came to her learning and the attention that her brother seemed to get from the nanny.

Olivia didn't have any siblings, so she couldn't relate to this 'favourite child' type of thing. However, she'd had a horrible relationship with her mother and never met her father, so she kind of knew what it was like to lose one parent and have another distant. Olivia knew from the conversations they had in the meeting, Elliot had been a rather distant father to this point, he felt guilty about it but it had happened. So, in a way she could relate to Elizabeth, which may be one of the reasons that she cared so deeply for the little girl. The more she thought about it, Chloe was very similar, as she didn't know her father and Olivia prayed that she never would. However, Olivia was 110% dedicated to her little girl and she would do anything for her, including getting her all the extra assistance or support she may need. Olivia hated Chloe's father and would do anything to help her daughter keep away from such the horrible man he was. But if Chloe was one day determined to see her father our and wanted to see him, then Olivia would help her out where she could because at the bed of the day, he did give her Chloe and she was a very special little girl. Olivia hoped that the same could be said for Elizabeth and Elliot, once he was back then hopefully things would get more structured or at least more equal for both children.

"All fin" Chloe spoke up, drawing her mother out of her thoughts about those Stabler twins. Chloe was looking rather impressed with herself for finishing dinner though she clearly hadn't noticed it was all over her face.  
"Alright then, I think it's bath time for you" Olivia said as she picked up the little girl from the high chair and headed for the bathroom.

* * *

Elizabeth walked into the classroom the following morning, in a better mood than the day before. But she still had a very deep and determined look on her face. She had come into school by herself, as Dani hadn't waited for her as they got out the car. Then she couldn't find them on the playground and so Elizabeth thought she would head to the classroom early to put her bag away. She also really wanted to see Miss Benson and ask her a couple of questions. Elizabeth wanted to know if Miss Benson had spoken with her father, like Miss Benson had said she was going to try to. She also wanted to know what 'lost cause' meant because that was exactly what Dani had called her last night and again earlier this morning. Elizabeth didn't know what the word meant and Dai wouldn't explain it to her when Elizabeth asked. Dickie had simply stated that he thought it was a good thing and she should take it as a compliment. Elizabeth thought otherwise.

"Morning Lizzie" a voice spoke up from behind where Elizabeth was walking. She turned on the spot and saw Miss Anderson standing behind her. Miss Anderson was the other teacher in her classroom now, helping out Miss Benson whilst learning to be a teacher. Elizabeth really liked Miss Anderson and thought she was very friendly. Elizabeth had created the card for her dad with Miss Anderson's help yesterday too.  
"Good Morning" Elizabeth replied, as the pair continued in the direction of the classroom.  
"Are you alright? You know you're not supposed to be in this building yet" Miss Anderson asked as she continued to follow Elizabeth and Elizabeth knew she had to explain what she was doing now.  
"I can't find Dickie or Dani…They didn't wait for me at the car and I've lost them now" Elizabeth explained, telling the truth in a way but it wasn't the entire truth.  
"I've not seen them in here this morning, how about we go and put your bag down and then I'll come help you look for them outside" Miss Anderson spoke up which only lead Elizabeth to feel like she needed to explain more.

"I need to talk to Miss Benson too though, before the bell" Elizabeth continued, she didn't want to go outside again just yet, she needed to get to Miss Benson.  
"She's in a meeting but maybe I can help you with what you need to talk about to her, too or we can tell her in class?"  
"No, I just need to know if she spoke to my dad" Elizabeth declined the offer as they reached the classroom and Miss Anderson helped her to put her bag up on her hook outside the classroom.  
"Well, how about we go see if we can find some of your friends or Dickie and Dani first and then after the bell we can talk with Miss Benson but she's really in a very important meeting right now and we need to go back outside" Miss Anderson tried to explain as she knelt to Elizabeth's height ot help the little girl understand. Elizabeth just nodded and after Miss Anderson stood up again, the pair headed back up the hallway towards the exit to the playground.

* * *

Elliot was looking out the window of the plane, he was heading home from his business trip and honestly felt kind of scared with what he was returning to New York to. The emails he had received from Olivia, Elizabeth's teacher had been slightly concerning to him and he hated the thought that his daughter was so unhappy. He wasn't sure what was really going on, but he was determined to get to the bottom of this as he wanted the best for his children. If the claims of favouritism had gotten this bad where his sitter, Dani was looking after one of his children more than the other, then he would need to reconsider that employment.

He was planning on arranging a meeting with Olivia again to check on any progress that Lizzie had made since their last meeting, as well as to discuss what else Lizzie had actually disclosed to her. He was also planning on talking everything through with Elizabeth and Dani to see what exactly was happening. Elliot was dedicated to his children and he would believe them over an employee if it came down to it, but he knew there are always two sides to any story, and he needed to hear both sides. Only once he had done that, he would the judgement on where to go next.

Elliot watched the clouds below him and thought back to the day the twins were born and how freaked out he had been at being a father in the beginning. He remembered feeling like he wasn't even sure if he would be able to properly care for these children like he wanted to. However, the minute that he looked into Elizabeth's eyes that first day, he made a vow that he was never going to let anyone hurt his children. He would protect them as much as he could and that was still true to this day, even with everything that they had to go through to get to now. Elizabeth and Richard had experienced more pain in their little lives than any child should have to, but Elliot was working hard now to try and stop any more pain where he could. This included in relation to who he left them with when he had to go away for work. He was determined to get to the bottom of this situation right now, he was going to help Elizabeth and he was going to make sure to protect his children.

_**A/N: Next chapter, Elliot's back and how do his children treat this return? What will happen with Dani? Guess you'll have to read the next update to find out :) **_


	6. Dad's Back!

**Chapter 6 – Dad's Back**

Olivia had sat through meetings all morning before the start of school, she'd been in meetings with parents or other teachers or even other school staff. She'd been in meetings since 7:45am this morning and already felt tired from the day, which hadn't really properly started yet. Due to these meetings and the need to be at school early for these meetings, Olivia had to leave Chloe in Lucy's hands before the little girl even woke up. Olivia just hoped that this afternoon would come quickly and she could leave earlier than usual to be the one to pick Chloe up from daycare. Olivia had made the promise to Chloe that when they moved to New York, when Chloe was only 3 months old, she would be a better mother for her and always be there when Chloe woke up. Of course, Chloe was too young to remember this but Olivia remembered and felt guilty whenever she wasn't there. However, Olivia did feel completely comfortable leaving Chloe with Lucy and knew that her little girl would be perfectly fine, especially considering Lucy would send her updates when Chloe woke up and when she'd been dropped off to day-care.

But by the time the morning bell actually did ring, Olivia already felt like it should be nearly home time. Now she wasn't a huge coffee drinker and she tried to minimise her intake where possible, but after how busy her morning had already been, Olivia knew today was going to be one of those days where coffee would be the only thing getting her through the day. Now despite how Olivia might be feeling about today, she really did love her class and enjoyed teaching each and every one of her students. But the look on Clara's face as she walked into the classroom before the students, had Olivia slightly concerned. Something clearly had happened before the morning bell, whilst Olivia was in all of her meetings.  
"Elizabeth wants to talk to you" Clara mentioned in passing as she moved past Olivia's desk. If Elizabeth was wanting to talk to her this early, then something had to have gone on last night at home, as Olivia had mentioned when Elizabeth left yesterday, that if she ever needed someone to talk to whilst her father was away or even when he was home, Elizabeth could always talk to her. Olivia went over to where Elizabeth was currently sitting at her desk and bent down beside her, but the little girl just looked at her.

"Hi Miss Benson" Elizabeth greeted.  
"Hey Lizzie, Miss Anderson told me that you wanted to talk to me? Is everything ok?" Olivia queried, concerned what the little girl wanted to ask her.  
"What does lost cause mean?" Elizabeth asked which took Olivia by surprise with such a enquiry.  
"Well, can you give me a little more information on how you heard it as it may have a couple of meanings"  
"I was doing my spelling homework last night with Bertie, she's our house lady, but Dani came down and said Bertie had to leave me as I was a lost cause…But I don't know what that means?" Elizabeth explained and Olivia almost didn't want to answer her. Olivia couldn't believe such a cruel thing had been said to such a sweet little girl like Elizabeth. She wasn't a lost cause at all, Olivia completely believed that she would be one incredibly smart little girl with just the right kind of assistance.  
"Honey, that really wasn't a very nice thing for Dani to say to you. But I want you to know that you are a very smart and beautiful little girl. I know you can achieve anything that you want to and I'm going to be here to help you do that ok?" Olivia stated, trying to divert the little girl's attention to something else. She didn't really know how to explain what a 'lost cause' was in a way that wouldn't hurt Elizabeth. Olivia just couldn't believe what she was hearing that was going on at home and prayed Elliot would be home soon to work it all out.

* * *

Elliot strolled into the school playground, standing near the entrance to the school but in clear vision of the exit of the school building where his children would come out. He had given Dani the afternoon off and told her not to worry about dropping the twins to school tomorrow morning either. Elliot planned to spend the rest of today and tomorrow morning away from work and with his sole focus on his children as he felt they needed him most right now. He also wanted to check in with both of their teachers to make sure that in the time he'd been away for business, his kids were still improving in their learning and not going the opposite way. He wanted to talk to Elizabeth's teacher the most, especially after the email which she'd sent him the other day. It had only been a week or so since they had put together a new plan to support Elizabeth's learning and he wanted to get more information on her progress or anything else they could be doing. He also wanted to say thank you to her for looking out for Elizabeth at school, he really appreciated the extra mile Olivia seemed to be going for his daughter. He appreciated the way Elizabeth felt comfortable enough to talk to Olivia and tell her about things going on that Elizabeth might not want to tell him or feel like she can't tell him.

The final bell of the day rang out loud and clear, Elliot watched as the children started to filter out of the entrance doors and teachers stood around observing all the kids being picked up. The older children came out by themselves, but Elizabeth and Richard's classes still came out with a teacher, just like the children who appeared to be in years below them. It only took mere seconds for Richard to spot his father and come sprinting over, whilst Elliot could see Elizabeth didn't want to leave Olivia's side and clearly hadn't spotted him yet. If she was being like this because she thought it would be Dani here collecting them today, that was a big warning sign to Elliot. Elliot hugged Richard close and listened as the boy tried to tell his father everything about his day in the space of a few minutes but continued to keep an eye on Elizabeth with her teacher.

"Daddy look! I got all my spelling list right!" Richard exclaimed, trying to get his father's true attention when he could see that his father was looking elsewhere to him.  
"Wow, that's great buddy" Elliot replied, high fiving the boy.  
"Yeah, Dani really helped me with my practice this week and Mrs Hawke says I've gone up 3 whole reading levels this week too. My teacher says that she's going to give me a special award this week for trying so hard. But I want to give it to Dani, cause she helped me so much" Richard continued as Elliot nodded, concerned slightly that Elizabeth didn't appear to want to come over here.  
"Well I think this calls for a celebration! We do need to get your sister first though" Elliot said as they started to make their way over to where Elizabeth and Olivia were still standing.

* * *

Olivia was bending down to be the same height as Elizabeth and talking to her, it was home time and she had seen Elliot was waiting for Elizabeth today rather than their nanny, but Elizabeth wouldn't leave her side. When Olivia had suggested they go see her father together, Elizabeth just wouldn't move, Olivia honestly had no idea what was going on right now. So instead, she decided to just stay in the spot and talk with Elizabeth, knowing sooner or later Elliot would have to come over to her instead.  
"Look Lizzie, your daddy's back and he's here to pick you up, it's not Dani" Olivia tried to coax again and the little girl just looked over to where her father was walking towards them with Richard and didn't move.  
"I don't want to go"  
"But sweetheart, it's home time now and I know daddy has come here especially to see you"  
"No he hasn't…he's here with Dickie and I know Dickie is going to say I'm lying about Dani but they aren't lies Miss Benson, I don't tell lies"  
"I know honey but come on, how about we talk to him together? I'll make sure you're ok before you go home?" Olivia suggested as she stood up again and Elizabeth reached for her hand as the pair started to walk towards Elliot and Richard who were walking towards them.

The group met in the middle and Elliot bent down to Elizabeth's height, trying to check in with his little girl who would normally be so happy to see him.  
"Hey honey" Elliot greeted and Elizabeth just looked at him, he could tell she was being very closed off and he didn't understand why. But after some coaching from Olivia, eventually Lizzie came into his arms and gave him the biggest hug but bursting into tears as Elliot held her. This sight not only broke Elliot's heart but it broke Olivia's too, it was clear this little girl had been feeling so much pain when her father was away. This reaction only made Elliot feel more guilty about it. Olivia continued to watch on as Elliot tried to soothe little girl, whispering softly to her and rubbing his hand up and down her back. _He's such a great father _Olivia thought as he watched the moment. Olivia could tell Dickie was concerned for his sister now she was crying but also wondering what was going on right now. Elliot gazed up at Olivia and said a silent thank you with his eyes. He wanted to talk with her more but could tell that from Elizabeth's reaction to him now, it wasn't the time. He needed to get his kids home and spend time just the three of them for a while.  
"I'll see you tomorrow Elizabeth, ok? Have a good afternoon" Olivia said her farewells and watched as the Stabler family left. They certainly weren't perfect and had ground to fix together, but she could tell that now Elliot was back in New York, the Stabler family were going to try and make it all better.

* * *

An hour later, Dickie was upstairs playing in his room with his Lego whilst Elizabeth sat at the dining table, drawing. Elliot knew they both had homework to be done but he wanted to make sure that things were calmer and more settled before he tackled that with them. Bertie had been just as happy to have Elliot home when they all got back this afternoon. She'd had the chef bake cookies and there were currently two plates with them around the penthouse, one with Elizabeth and one with Richard. Elliot currently stood in the doorway of the living and dining room, just watching Elizabeth and thinking about how she had been at school. He hated that she had broken down the minute he was holding her and how she wouldn't let him go until they were home.

"Hi daddy" Elizabeth spoke up, clearly Elliot had been spotted from watching her.  
"Hi honey, what are you up to?" Elliot asked as he walked over to behind her  
"Drawing, I'm making Miss Benson a card" Elizabeth explained.  
"That's a lovely idea, she's going to love it"  
"She is my favourite teacher and Bertie said it's important to let people know when he are thanking them for what they do for us" Elizabeth explained and Elliot had to agree. Miss Benson had done a lot not only for Elizabeth but for him too and so maybe he needed to show some appreciation as well.  
"Bertie is exactly right, Miss Benson helped you out a lot whilst I was gone didn't she?" Elliot asked as he sat at the table across from Elizabeth and watched her drawing. Elizabeth just nodded in agreement with her father.  
"She help me with my school and when explained big things Dani said to me…like I'm a lost cause"  
"Dani called you that?"  
"Mmhmm, as Bertie…She told Bertie to stop helping me with my homework last night cause I'm a lost cause and only Dickie can be helped. It really hurt me, but Miss Benson told me that it's not true and it's not is it daddy?" Elizabeth tried to explain.  
"Of course not and I don't want you ever to think that it is, ok? You are a beautiful, smart, funny little girl who I absolutely adore and don't let anyone else ever tell you differently" Elliot said, he couldn't believe that someone would tell his daughter that she was a lost cause. He never wanted her to believe that, he wanted his children to know that they could achieve anything they wanted to if they tried. Hard work was important to achieving dreams, but he never wanted his children or any children to believe that they couldn't make their dreams come true or anything because they could. Elliot would spend forever trying to prove that to them if he had to.  
"Ok Daddy" Elizabeth replied as Elliot pressed a soft kiss to her forehead, snatched a cookie from the plate and then left Elizabeth to her creative work.

**_A/N: Well it's not like Elizabeth to be hesitant to leave Olivia's side but with everything she must be going through from Dani, can we really blame her? I don't know about you, but i'm so glad Elliot's back, maybe now things with Dani and the kids can be sorted out? I guess we'll have to wait and see what happens next right? But i think there is a special bond growing between Elizabeth and Olivia, so what does that mean for Elliot? Hmm?  
_**_**Let me know what you thought of this chapter by leaving a review! They are all appreciated and i love reading them all.  
Until Next Time ;)**_


	7. Discussions

_**A/N: Thank you for all the lovely reviews, i'm really glad to see so many of you are enjoying this story because i'm honestly really enjoying writing it and taking two of our beloved characters and changing their roles up. I apologise for the delay in updating, i've been rather sick, which has affected the enthusiasm to write and i also decided the other night that i didn't like where this story was going and changed it up. Don't worry, it didn't affect the chapters which are just waiting to be published, but as i like ot be a few chapters ahead of what i'm publishing, it did put a hold on releasing more. Hopefully though, the changes are for the best. Anyway, here is our next chapter and please let me know what you think by leaving a review at the end.  
Until Next Time ;)**_

**Discussions**

Toddlers are unpredictable and it's one of the reasons they are one of the harder phases in parenting. They have good days and they have bad days, neither more predictable than the other. Olivia knew this well and was adamant that this stage was going to never end, this would be her with Chloe for the rest of their days. Olivia had days with Chloe that were the absolute highlight of her life and she wished she could relive all the time. But then there would be days where Chloe wouldn't sleep and so the little girl kept her up all night and was super clingy, which meant that Olivia then moved through a school day with heavy sleep deprivation. Today, was one of those days. Chloe had been unsettled as she went to bed last night and had not slept well, waking up several times across the night, which meant Olivia was awake numerous times across the night too. But the difference was, Chloe would have the chance to take a nap later today whilst Olivia had to work all day, she did however say a silent prayer that her students were well behaved today. Olivia was in for a long day but she thankfully, managed to get everything ready in time for Lucy to be with Chloe and do the daycare drop off, so she could get to work.

Olivia had planning and reporting work that she needed to get done for different support purposes and so she had made a specific plan to get to school early and work on this. However, she never expected to be interrupted from doing this, by a parent without a schedule meeting. She also didn't expect that the parent would be Elizabeth's father, Elliot Stabler.  
"Good morning" Olivia greeted as she walked past Elliot into the classroom, from getting a fresh coffee from the staffroom.  
"Good morning, I hope I'm not interrupting anything. I just wanted to see if you had time to talk?" Elliot asked. _Oh, only all the paperwork I came in early to do, but it's fine _Olivia sarcastically thought to herself.  
"No, you're ok, it's just paperwork. Come and take a seat" Olivia encouraged as Elliot came into the classroom and took a seat at one of the student's desks. Olivia grabbed her notepad from her desk and sat down opposite him. She brought the notepad to be able to write down anything they discussed or needed to be followed up with.  
"So, what's up?" Olivia asked, trying to start the conversation and work out why Elliot was here right now.  
"It's Elizabeth. I'm concerned and I don't quite know what to do to help her" Elliot confessed, and Olivia wondered if this would be the case.  
"What's going on?" Olivia replied, she would do anything to help that little girl if she could.  
"She really admires you, she values everything that you do for her in a large way and you're a huge support for her. But I can tell something is going on with her, yesterday was a big trigger for me and I don't know how to help my little girl or what is really going on. But I know she's not happy" Elliot asked, Olivia felt touched by this. She knew that she had a big influence over the little girl but she didn't realise quite how much and that it was so evident to the people around her. Olivia took a deep breath and centered her thoughts a little working out the best way to explain this.

"You probably don't realise it, but you have just as much influence on Elizabeth if not more. You are the one that she will come and tell me stories about you, or she will always write about you and the things you've done together. So, don't doubt how important you are to her or how much she loves you. She has missed you incredibly much though. Can I be honest?" Olivia asked, not wanting to overstep her mark with this discussion.  
"Of course" Elliot encouraged, he really wanted her to hear what Olivia had to say, he wanted to get to the bottom of the issue around whatever was going on with Elizabeth.  
"Elizabeth has serious issues with your nanny, Dani. I know it's not really my place to say but I have serious concerns with you leaving Lizzie with her at the moment" Olivia tried to explain, though she felt a little bit scared that she had gone too far. Elliot was grateful for the insight though.  
"In you email, you mentioned some concerning things and frankly I'm not happy with hearing that my daughter is getting upset at school. The twins are with the housekeeper at the moment and she's going to bring them to school for me this morning. I have given Dani a break for now, until I can hopefully talk to her later today" Elliot explained.  
"I'm really glad to hear they aren't with Dani right now as I hate to say it but I think things have got worse since my last email. Lizzie came to school yesterday and asked me what a 'lost cause' was. Apparently, she'd heard Dani call her a lost cause to Bertie? Now Lizzie is incredibly bright and with the right support she has already made significant improvement with her learning and reading. She is in no way a lost cause and no child should be called that, it can be detrimental to their education and learning" Olivia explained, Elliot just nodded. She had a strong feeling that Elliot knew exactly where she was coming from at the moment.

"Yes, Lizzie and I had a big talk last night about everything that happened and about that comment last night. I don't ever want my daughter to hear those types of things in relation to her. She isn't a lost cause and I want her to believe that she can achieve everything that she sets her mind to. However, I also have the belief that there are two sides to every story and I want to get to the bottom of this. Therefore, I've arranged a meeting with Dani later today to discuss this and I will decide from that as to how I move forward on this"  
"If you decide after all this that Dani is not right for your daughter or for your family and need some recommendations on someone new, let me know as I can provide you with a few suggestions" Olivia advised, to which Elliot nodded. Olivia wanted to help in anyway that she could because she knew what single parent life was like and she wanted to be able to assist where she could rather than leaving someone out on their own.

* * *

The conversation this morning with Olivia provided Elliot with a lot to think about, he was glad that she had been willing to sit down with him and talk about it. Elliot was impressed with how well Olivia really knew his daughter and even thought it was possible she knew his daughter better than he did. He was also glad to hear that there had been so much that Elizabeth had felt comfortable with confiding in Olivia about. Elliot knew that he had to make some changes and the meeting with Dani over lunch would be casual but it would be the perfect time to work out whether she was the right person to be looking after his children. Olivia had provided some really useful suggestions in how to approach the subject with Dani and the things to keep a mental note of. Whilst Elliot wasn't if he should be confiding in Olivia so much about his family life or extra things going on but there was just something about her that made him want to tell her everything. Elliot just really thought that Olivia was very approachable and she could see why Elizabeth thought so highly of this woman. In ways more than just a teacher.

He sat in the back of the car as it made it's way through the busy streets of New York City. He was heading to the hotel where he had a few things to attend to before heading out to his lunch with Dani. He wasn't sure what this afternoon would then hold, whether he would need to get his children, whether someone else would or whether he would be able to rely on Dani with them again. Elizabeth wasn't happy, that was distinctly obvious and the claims that the source of her unhappiness, was the baby sitter and Elliot being away a lot, made Elliot determined to make changes. He was determined to not spend as much of his time travelling or away from home, his business may need him but Elliot was sure his kids needed him more. He was dedicated to his children, he always would be and would place them first from now on.

There was really nothing like being a father, it was the most important job on the planet to Elliot. He may not have seen it before but something about this year was making him start to see the importance of being a father now. The driver looked at Elliot through the rear view mirror, questioning if something was wrong but Elliot just shook him off. Elliot didn't want to talk about it right now, he just wanted to get through everything that was today and work out where to go next. He wanted to work out how best to move forward ensuring his kids were safe and happy when he couldn't be around.

* * *

Elliot sat at the coffee shop, waiting for Dani and his coffee, both of whom were yet to actually arrive. He had phone in his usual order before he arrived at the café, to prohibit the long wait in queues or to be served at the table. But Elliot hadn't expected Dani to be late as well. He had already confirmed with her earlier today that they would meet for coffee and lunch to which she had agreed. But it was almost 10 minutes past when they were supposed to meet at the café and Dani was nowhere to be seen. The one thing that Elliot had to admit was his pet hate, was when people were late or simply didn't provide explanation on why this was. He was always the kind of person who, when they had to be somewhere at a set time, would be early or on time. He would never allow himself to be late. Elliot would hate himself if he was late somewhere, even after he had children. Especially when there were other people who were counting on him to be somewhere at a set time. Elliot groaned to himself as he looked at the watch but thankfully at least part of his annoyance was short lived as his coffee arrived, along with his toasted sandwich for lunch.

Elliot continued to wait for Dani as he ate lunch, he even called her a couple of times but got no response. It was like she had just disappeared into thin air, all because he'd wanted to meet up with her. It wasn't looking good for her future prospects in terms of employment with him and he'd expected better from her. Elliot had always thought very highly of Dani and the work she did for him, he thought she was better than this. Elliot wasn't sure what he would do if she was like this when she was supposed to be working for him later today. It was definitely turning into one day which Elliot would rather avoid or forget. He had a million other things that needed to get done and he wasn't happy.

Elliot dialed the number one more time after he finished his lunch, it had now been over an hour since the time they had arranged to meet up and Dani had not contacted him or shown up. Elliot was less than impressed that was for sure. The call rang out to voice mail and Elliot decided he would leave a message this final time.  
"Hi Dani, it's Elliot Stabler. You and I were supposed to meet up today for lunch to discuss a few things in regards to your employment. However, you have not shown up to this meeting time and neglected to tell me why this was. So, until you have contacted me with a reason, consider your future employment as pending. I do not appreciate when I arrange to meet with someone, they don't show up or explain why this is. I will wait to hear from you to further discuss this" Elliot stated, maintaining a high professionalism during their call and ensuring to end it promptly. He thanked the waitress who came to clear his table and left a big tip after the bill for the waitress. Now, having waited for Dani for so long, he had to and organise a few final things before going to pick up the kids himself. If there was one positive to this end to the day, it would be that Elliot could get to see another certain teacher again and he really liked the thought of that.

_**A/N: Uh Oh...This can't be good? What is Elliot going to do now?**_


	8. Stood Up

**Chapter 8 - Stood Up**

Olivia always took extra vigilant care with her collection supervision for her students. There were too many cases where teachers neglected to really care when students were pick up as they thought their 'day was done' and kids ended up going missing. That was Olivia's worst nightmare, that one of her students would go missing or get taken whilst on her watch. She had a really big belief in that it was her responsibility that as soon as her students walked into her classroom, they were her responsibility and she had to make sure they left just as safely as they'd arrived, at the end of the day. Elizabeth was one of the last children to be picked up today and Mandy had to head off to an emergency meeting, so she'd left Richard with Olivia till they were picked up. Olivia couldn't help to wonder whether they would be seeing Dani at the pick up or if it would be Elliot or another person all together. She knew that twins wouldn't have a clue either as they didn't know there was possible changes in their routines in the first place. Olivia was surprised when Elliot walked in through the school gates, but the look on his face showed things today clearly hadn't gone well.

The minute that the twins laid eyes on Elliot, they took off running over to hug him. Olivia smiled softly as she watched both Elizabeth and Richard almost bear hug Elliot to the ground and once she knew the kids were safely with their father, she turned to head inside again She really needed to go back and finish up a few things in her room so that she could get out of here and go to Chloe who Olivia knew would be just as happy to see her.

* * *

Olivia and Clara were discussing events from today and things to improve moving forward when they were interrupted by a knock at the door from the Stabler trio.  
"Mr Stabler, is everything alright?" Olivia asked, wanting to keep things professional in front of Clara and the children.  
"I thought we agreed that you would call me Elliot? Do you have a minute to talk?" Elliot asked as he remained stood in the doorway. Olivia could tell that Elliot needed someone to talk to about whatever was going on. She would have thought that someone like him would have a million other people he would talk to about this before turning to her. Yet here he was, looking to her as a confidant and she knew she couldn't turn him down.  
"Sure, Miss Anderson, would you mind watching Lizzie and Dickie for a couple of minutes? We won't be long" Olivia asked as she started to move towards the doorway. She thought it would be better to keep the kids in the classroom with Clara rather than turn them away to entertain themselves. In the classroom at least there were things to do and Olivia knew Clara would have them occupied in no time. As Clara agreed, Elliot kissed both the twins heads and told them to be good before they moved over to sit with Clara and Olivia guided him into the corridor. They stayed in sight though, to ensure that they kept up the school protocol of a teacher never being left alone with an individual student or two, just to avoid untrue claims or an investigation.

"How'd everything go today?" Olivia asked, she was pretty sure this was the topic of conversation that Elliot wanted to talk to her about. Elliot just started at his feet silently, Olivia was good at reading people and she could tell he was rather angry at the moment within himself. If Elliot was angry, then clearly things hadn't gone well with Dani, especially considering he was here collecting his kids.  
"Elliot?" Olivia prompted, wanting to see if he'd actually heard her question.  
"Well they would have gone a lot better if there was actually a meeting" Elliot stated which shocked Olivia.  
"What?"  
"Dani never showed. I sat there for over an hour and she never showed up…I called her numerous times and she didn't even answer the phone once or give me any kind of message she wasn't going to make it" Elliot explained.  
"You're joking?" Olivia was in complete shock, this was definitely not how she expected the meeting to go.  
"I wish I was. Dani made me look like an absolute fool and stood me up when I was prepared to talk everything through and give her a second chance. Now, if she so much as thinks that I'll give her a good reference, she has another thing coming" Elliot explained, Olivia could hear the anger in his tone and could tell more than anything he was embarrassed and hurt.

"Elliot…"  
"No, the one thing I hate is when people, who I take time out of my day to meet with, are late or even worse just don't show up"  
"Sometimes things happen…Maybe there is an explanation for her actions?" Olivia tried to reason with Elliot a little. She didn't think he was wrong with his behaviour as Olivia really didn't like Dani, but she needed to help him see the full picture.  
"I called her one last time this afternoon as I was paying for lunch at the café, I left a message and she hasn't got back to me yet. So I guess we'll just have to wait and see how that goes or if she gets in touch…She works for me, so she should be the one to really show me that she wants to keep her job" Elliot justified.  
"Just…give her a chance to get in contact after your message and take it from there. If you can't be here to get the twins in the meantime, then that's ok. I can stay later here if needed or arrange to get them home safely. But I'll also send a list home with Lizzie tomorrow with other Nannies that you might be interested in hiring" Olivia explained, she was really going to look after this family.  
"Thank you" Elliot said as he looked over to Olivia and smiled. Elliot knew that this was outside of her role as a teacher. His friend's had kids and their teachers really weren't as likely to go above and beyond to help when needed but clearly Olivia was. Elliot didn't understand why as she didn't have to, but he was grateful all the same.  
"Don't mention it" Olivia smiled back as they headed into the classroom again so Elliot could collect the kids and Olivia could finish up with Clara. Elliot thanked Olivia once more for the talk and her assistance before getting both Elizabeth and Richard to do the same and thank Clara. The trio then made their way out of the classroom and down the hall.

* * *

Clara was sure that she had never been lucky enough to work with a teacher quite like Olivia. Clara thought it was amazing the way that Olivia continually went above and beyond to support her students and make sure they were getting everything they needed. Clara had never seen a teacher with quite so high rapport with the parents either and you could clearly see from simple observations how much the parents all loved Olivia as much as the kids. One parent in particular though seemed to take more of an interest to Olivia and her support than others. It was the same parent who had interrupted their meeting to talk with Olivia. If Clara was the proper classroom teacher, she wasn't entirely sure that she would allow this type of thing and change her whole afternoon for a parent. But Olivia did it absolutely flawlessly. Clara felt incredibly lucky to have been partnered up with Olivia and she knew there was so much that she was going to learn and numerous ways she would grow from working with Olivia all year. She did have to admit though, she was curious as to what the story behind Mr Stabler and the constant chats with Olivia was.

"What's going on there?" Clara asked, once Olivia had taken her seat behind the desk again in the classroom.  
"What's going on where?" Olivia tried to clarify, unsure exactly what the younger woman was referring to.  
"Between you and Mr Stabler, otherwise known as Mystery Dad" Clara clarified.  
"He just needed help with something, that was all that was" Olivia shut her down.  
"I don't think that was really _all _that was, there is clearly something more going on. He just comes to the classroom and asks to speak with you and it's ok?"  
"He's going through some things at the moment and needed advice on how to best support his children with this. I provided options and am going to send a further letter home with Elizabeth tomorrow"  
"First, you magically get him to even come to school and take an interest in his children's education when you say that no other teacher has been able to. Then you not only have a long meeting with him this morning and one this afternoon as well. Are you sure that he's not abusing your kindness as a teacher?" Clara asked, she knew she might be crossing a line here but she wanted to find out as much as she can about what is really going on.  
"He's a single dad, single parenthood is a hard road, I know that more than anyone. So, he's not abusing my kindness, he's after support and honestly if that means things might be better for Lizzie and Dickie then I'm going to help in any way that I can. It's what we do as teachers, we look after our students" Olivia explained to which Clara just nodded, Olivia really was an amazing teacher.

Clara was sure there was really something a little more serious coming between this pair, she was sure that there was a growing sense of closeness between them. It was the type of closeness that Olivia didn't have with all her other parents. Clara had seen it clearly in the short time that she had been at this school and really wasn't sure if this was healthy. Clara made a mental note to research the Stabler family later tonight and work out what might be going on here. Clara was sure that this entire thing wasn't completely down to the fact that Olivia and Elliot were able to relate to each other as single parents. There had to be more to it.

After everything that Elliot had told Olivia that afternoon and the fact that she was going to be a little later than intended getting home. Olivia stopped at a local bakery to grab a nice treat for Lucy. Olivia really wanted to make sure that Lucy knew how much she was appreciated and how thankful Olivia was for everything that she did. Olivia already had a good relationship with Lucy and was always very appreciative of her, but sometimes it was important to make a little bit more of an effort to show that appreciation. Particularly after hearing everything that Elliot was going through with Dani.

* * *

Olivia walked into the apartment and found Lucy and Chloe playing at the coffee table in the lounge room. Chloe was drawing on some paper, well due to Chloe's age it was more scribbling. but the little girl was happy. Olivia appreciated all the pictures that Chloe made her for as those were key stages in her development, and it was a sign of Chloe's creativity. Chloe looked up as soon as Olivia had walked in the door.

"Mommy" Chloe called out as she made her way carefully past the coffee table and ran straight over to Olivia.  
"There's my sweet girl, did you have fun with Lucy?" Olivia asked as she picked Chloe up and the little girl rested her head on Olivia's shoulder.  
"I'm so sorry I'm a little late, I had a last-minute unexpected meeting with a parent. But, I wanted to give you this, it's a little something to say thank you for everything that you do for us" Olivia said as she held out the bag for Lucy.  
"Liv, you didn't have t-"  
"No, I did, I wanted you to know that although Chloe can't quite say it, she and I are very grateful for you and everything you do for both of us. Aren't we Chlo?" Olivia ask and the little girl jut nodded. Olivia could tell this little one was tired from the day and it wouldn't be long before she was in bed. Olivia could relate, she felt exhausted from today.  
"Well it's honestly my pleasure. I love hanging out with this one and you're the best boss I've ever really had. Don't worry about being late or plans changing or anything, I really don't mind. The daycare said she didn't want to nap today, so I think she's in the need for an early night"  
"Alright, thanks for the heads up. Now you get off home safely and we'll see you tomorrow" Olivia said as she walked Lucy to the door and stood watching till Lucy made it into the elevator.

"Ok sweet girl, I think it might be time for a easy dinner and then bed" Olivia said as she ran a hand up and down Chloe's back.  
"Not t'ied" Chloe whined, trying to shake off sleep as she rubbed her eyes. It was a key telltale sign that the little girl was actually beyond tired and ready for bed.  
"Oh I think you are. But I'm tired too so I'm going to bed soon too" Olivia stated as she carried Chloe on her hip and started to organise something simple for dinner. She wasn't in the mood to cook so she would make a simple mac and cheese for Chloe and then once the little girl was in bed, Olivia would likely order something in.

_**A/N: Well looks like things with Dani are only going from bad to worse? Elliot doesn't appear to be taking it well, does he? But hey at least he feels like there is one person he can turn to. But is Clara on the right track? Is there something growing between Elliot and Olivia? Or are they simply being good friends? Hmmm I wonder...  
**__**Coming Up: Everyone has a life outside of work or school and if Elliot doesn't have a nanny anymore, is he going to look after the kids? What happens about weekends? What do our favourite people get up to? Do we hear more from Dani? Guess you'll have to wait and see ;)**_

_**Let me know what you thought of this chapter in a review? I'm loving seeing so many of your thoughts about different characters in this story and what you think might come next.  
Until Next Time ;)**_


	9. Weekends

**Chapter 9 - Weekends**

Sundays were the perfect days for family time. Sundays were when Olivia wasn't doing anything teaching related or any planning for the upcoming week. She had made sure to get it all done by the end of last week and often worked on Friday nights to prepare for the next week, so that she could take Sunday for Chloe and sometimes she even took Saturdays for Chloe took. Due to the busy schedules that they have during the working week, Olivia always took the weekend as a time to put her interests solely in her daughter and what she needs. They would spend the weekend doing things which Chloe enjoyed or they enjoyed doing together rather than Olivia's thoughts being soley on what she needed to get done for the upcoming week.

As today was such a nice day, Olivia had taken the opportunity for them to get out of the house and head to the park. Olivia would take Chloe to go and geed the ducks and play on the playground, these were some of Chloe's favourite things to do. They would head out after Chloe's afternoon nap and enjoy the most of the afternoon sun and nice weather but likely take their afternoon tea with them. Early October in New York City was slightly cooler in the weather generally pretty sunny days still. Olivia knew they would need to get out and enjoy the most of this weather whilst they can as she was sure it wouldn't be too much longer till the winter chills really started to set in.

The afternoon sun was cooler than it had been in the previous weeks, but the afternoon was still the perfect time for the park. Olivia loved the fresh air, sunshine and the chance to play outside with Chloe rather than in the apartment. The minute they arrived at the park, they headed straight for the pond in the middle as that was where the ducks were and Chloe wanted to feed the ducks first. Olivia made sure to keep Chloe in the stroller though as she didn't want the little girl to try and end up in the pond like she had attempted to a few weeks ago.  
"Mommy look duck" Chloe called out as Olivia handed the little girl some torn up bread to feed the birds. Olivia knew that it was highly likely most of the bread she had brought would end up being eaten by Chloe rather than the ducks but that was beside the point here.  
"Good spotting honey" Olivia replied, kneeling down beside the little girl in the chair and continuing to hand her bits of torn bread for her to throw. Chloe tried to throw the bread in the water, but it ended up on the floor and Chloe looked confused. Olivia just smiled, picked up the bread again and pushed the stroller a little bit closer to the water before handing the bread to Chloe to throw again. This time Chloe squealed in delight as she watched one of the ducks decide to eat the bread she had thrown. Chloe's laughter was like music to Olivia's ears, she loved to hear her little girl so happy.

* * *

Weekends were a time that Elliot had determined would not be for work, they were the days where he was going to focus on his kids in particular and get out to do things. If Elliot had to travel for work, he would always aim to get back to New York for the weekend to be with his kids, he wanted to make sure he had that special time with them when he was away all week. Saturday's were pretty busy in the stabler house hold with very little time for free time, between Dickie's soccer game and Elizabeth's dance classes. So, Saturday afternoons were usually pretty lazy and chilled out but Sundays would be the day they got out and did things together in the city. Each week it alternated between the twins as to what they did on the Sunday and this week it was Richard's time to decide what they did. Elizabeth had picked last weekend which had resulted in a trip to the movies, so this week Richard wanted to go and play soccer int the park. Elizabeth wasn't a fan of soccer or sports in general really, but Elliot took the time to explain to her, that as they did what she wanted last time they were all going to do what Richard wanted this time. It was the way to make sure it was fair. Elizabeth only didn't like sports activities as she wasn't very good at them and thus often felt a little left out when they did this. It was times like these where she wished she still had a mother, because her mother would be able to divert attention to other things and they could do something else than sports. However, the afternoon wasn't really going to be as bad as Elizabeth expected in the end. The chef had packed them a picnic afternoon tea to take with them and so Elliot grabbed the picnic basket after they all climbed out of the car and told the driver he would text when they were ready to head home again. But It would likely be a couple of hours before that was the case. Richard carried the soccer ball as they all walked to the grass to play and it was decided that they would have 2 teams; Richard versus Elizabeth and Elliot. Richard was feeling pretty confident he had this competition in the bag as he was a great soccer player. But Elliot had been more focused on convincing Elizabeth that they were going to take Richard down in healthy competition.

An hour later, Elizabeth had lost all interest in the soccer game with the boys. She felt like she was not as good as her dad or brother and wasn't interested in playing with them anymore. Elliot had tried ot change that numerous times but each time Elizabeth simply refused and moved to take a seat under the big oak tree, near where they had left their stuff. However, her interest soon turned ot the pond instead and she could see there were ducks there so she wanted to head over there. Elizabeth asked her father if she could go over to the pond and Elliot agreed as long as she stayed where he could see her and safely away from the water. Elizabeth and Richard were still learning to swim but Elliot knew going near that volume of water could be dangerous for the young girl who wasn't a confident swimmer. Swimming was one skill that the twins were late learning to do as it wasn't something, he or Kathy had particularly been affected by but it was a necessary skill to have. Elliot trusted Elizabeth though, and hoped that she would obey what he said, and stay a safe distance away from the water.

* * *

Elizabeth walked over to the pond, taking in the appearance of different people she could see and those around the edge where the ducks were. But something familiar struck her eye as she walked closer, there appeared to be a familiar figure crouching near the ducks. The figure was a taller lady with dark brown hair and she was kneeling by a stroller whilst feeding the ducks. Elizabeth thought that there was a striking resemblance with this figure to her teacher, but why would her teacher be here with a stroller. Elizabeth had never heard about Miss Benson having children or anything, so there was no way that this woman could be Miss Benson. Besides, it was the weekend and Elizabeth thought that Miss Benson would likely not want to be around children now if she's with them all week on her class._ It's just a lady that looks like Miss Benson, not actually Miss Benson _Elizabeth thought to herself as she approached the woman. However, the closer she got the more Elizabeth could hear Miss Benson's voice, she would recognise the voice of her teacher and someone she really admired, anywhere.

"Miss Benson?" Elizabeth asked as she approached the woman by the stroller. She waited patiently as the woman looked up at her and could see the surprise on her face as she looked at Elizabeth.  
"Elizabeth? Hi" Olivia greeted, she wasn't sure whether she should be happy or shocked to see her student standing here right now.  
"What are you doing here?" Elizabeth asked, looking at the stroller and the little girl inside. She was a very small girl and didn't look that old yet.  
"Chloe and I were feeding the ducks. What are you doing here? You don't live around here?" Olivia queried.  
"I'm here with my daddy and Dickie, they are playing soccer over there but I got tired of it...i can't play soccer very good and they can" Elizabeth explained as she pointed back towards the direction of her dad and brother.  
"I'm sure you're much better at soccer than I am. But remember what we say, you're always learning so something you can't do now or might not be good at now, isn't always going to be something that you won't be good at. The more you play soccer the more you will get better" Olivia explained as Elizabeth smiled and knew this woman was right. Miss Benson always seemed to know the answer to every and had the best advice for Elizabeth.

"Is Chloe your daughter?" Elizabeth asked a few minutes later, as Olivia was focused on handing the little girl in the stroller some more bread.  
"She is, she's one and a half. We really like to come to the park some afternoons and feed the ducks" Olivia explained.  
"Duckies!" Chloe chimed in as she held up the bread to Elizabeth and Olivia smiled. Chloe wasn't the best at sharing but clearly she had struck an interest in whoever her mother was talking to.  
"Would you like to feed the ducks too? I'm sure that Chloe wouldn't mind sharing the bread with you. She's not too good at breaking the bread though but she's learning how to throw it" Olivia explained, handing the second last slice of bread they had to Elizabeth. She quickly accepted and started to tear up some bread to throw to the ducks. Whilst the girls were busy feeding the ducks, and Elizabeth was talking away, Olivia made a quick look around to make sure that Elliot and Dickie were close by. Whilst Olivia would look after this little girl no matter what, she hated the thought that on any other day Elizabeth could walk away from the group and something could happen if she wasn't being watched. New York was a dangerous city. She found them a minute later and saw Elliot take a quick glance over in their direction, at least he was keeping an eye on one child whilst entertaining the other.

* * *

A short while later, all the bread was gone and Chloe was growing restless in her stroller. She had been strapped into that seat for a while now and Olivia knew she wanted to get out and run. Elizabeth had held pretty much the entire conversation whilst they were feeding the ducks but she had interacted with Chloe too. Olivia had found it really sweet the way Elizabeth had interacted with Chloe and listened to all her jumbled chatter. Olivia knew that apart from Dickie, Elizabeth had no other siblings, but she would make a great older sister if the time came. However, it was now time that they move over to the playground and give Chloe the chance to play and get some of her energy out. They had eaten afternoon tea and now all Chloe would need was a chance to run around and she should go to bed easily for Olivia tonight.  
"Well, I think it's time that I take this one over to the playground. I think we've successfully filled the ducks up with our bread. Chloe you want to run don't you?" Olivia asked the little girl.  
"we go on da side too? Chloe asked.  
"Yes honey, we can go on the slide too if you would like"  
"Come too?" Chloe asked, more directed at Elizabeth than at Olivia. It looked like the little girl really wanted to play with Elizabeth at the playground but that decision wasn't up to Olivia.  
"I don't know honey. I think Lizzie has to stay near her daddy and brother. But Lizzie, If you want to come on the playground then why don't you go ask your dad first and I can watch you" Olivia suggested whilst Elizabeth took off running back to her father. Olivia really didn't mind watching over Elizabeth as well as Chloe, as it didn't seem like Elizabeth wanted to sit about and watch Soccer for any longer and they were going to the playground anyway.

_**A/N: Well...I never saw that coming? Elliot, Dickie, Elizabeth at the park at the same time as Olivia and Chloe...Are they all going to interact? Or is Elliot not going to let Elizabeth go to the park as it's Dickie's choice this weekend. I guess you'll have to wait and see. Let me know what you thought of the chapter by leaving a review as i love to read them all and see what you all thought. Thanks for reading and until next time ;)**_


	10. The Park

_**A/N: So firstly, i apologise for the slight delay in the posting of chapters here for you all. There were a few situations that came up in my personal life that i needed to handle and work was a little crazy lately. However, next week should be more straight forward and i can hopefully post a few more updates. There are some decent sized steps made in this chapter, that have an impact on where this story is going to go next...but what happens? Read on to find out!**_

**Chapter 10**

Elliot had watched Elizabeth approach the pond and seem to be familiar with a brunette woman who was near the pond at that moment. He watched the interaction between the two and from reading the body language of Elizabeth, he could tell that she was very fond of this other woman and the other woman seemed to be very familiar with Elizabeth. The more he stood watching the pair as they interacted, the more Elliot started to notice some familiar features about her. It was like he was watching someone he had seen a lot and somewhat knew. The lady looked reasonably tall, had longer beautiful brunette hair and that seemed to shine in the afternoon sun. She was very good with children and she had a simply stunning figure. _Get your head out of the gutter _Elliot tried to reprimand himself as he watched his daughter whilst trying to entertain his son in soccer. Elliot couldn't help but think this woman that Elizabeth was talking to looked a lot like her teacher, there was serious striking resemblance to Olivia. Elliot wasn't sure how Elizabeth was so friendly with this woman when there was really a very little chance that it could be her teacher. Elliot didn't really know Olivia but he was sure that nay teacher would want to be as far from children as possible on the weekend. There would be no way they would want to come and spend an afternoon surrounded by them at the park.

"Daddy, Daddy!' Elizabeth called as she came running over.  
"Hey honey, what's up? You ok?" Elliot stopped playing with Dickie and turned attention to his daughter.  
"I saw Miss Benson, that's her feeding the ducks by the pond where I was…See daddy she's over there" Elizabeth explained and pointed over to the exact brunette lady that Elliot had been looking at earlier. He had been right in thinking it could possible be Elizabeth's teacher as it was.  
"What's Miss Benson doing here?" Dickie asked as he joined the pair.  
"She's feeding the ducks with her daughter, Chloe…Can I go to the playground with them? Please?" Elizabeth begged.  
"Leave Miss Benson alone…It's the weekend…I don't bother mrs Hawke on the weekend" Richard replied, clearly not as invested or caring about the situation as his sister is.  
"I don't know…"  
"Please daddy? Please? Miss Benson said she'd watch me so you can play with Dickie" Elizabeth continued to bargain with her father and Elliot couldn't help but agree. He stated that he would be over soon though and they would be leaving after that. Elizabeth quickly grabbed an apple out of the basket that they'd brought for afternoon tea and took off back towards Olivia.

* * *

Olivia stood by the swings, pushing Chloe slowly on the toddler safe swing whilst Elizabeth continued to swing on one of the other swings close by. Olivia was surprised with the attention by the little girl, she could tell that Chloe was loving it all. Olivia didn't mind it either. Chloe didn't have any siblings and didn't have any extended family either, apart from her father, so it was really nice for Chloe to be able to interact with an older child so well. Olivia hoped that one day she would have at least another children but she really wasn't sure if that time would ever come with her dating history and her current prospects. Olivia knew that Chloe would see other children around her age at day care during the week and occasionally she went out with a few other people from daycare on the weekends for a playdate. But not that many of Olivia's friends even had kids yet and the ones that did, didn't live in New York so there wasn't much opportunity to see them. Olivia looked up from the girls and saw Elliot walking over towards the group, so she knew it was likely time for Elizabeth to be heading him now. She also knew that it was probably passed the time she had originally planned to get Chloe home too. Though Chloe still seemed to be holding things together alright.

"Daddy, look how high I can go!" Elizabeth called out as she spotted her father coming over to them and clearly wanted to show off a bit. Elliot was a little concerned by this, he didn't want her to get hut. Olivia watched as Chloe started to wriggle in the seat like she wanted to do that too but just couldn't get the swing to work in her favour.  
"Looks like somebody wants to do exactly like the big girls can" Olivia remarked, pushing the swing a little more but trying to keep it safe for Chloe in the process even with all her wriggling.  
"Chloe, you are only little, but maybe you'll do it too when you're bigger" Elizabeth replied as she started to slow the swing down. She knew that if her dad was around now then it would be time to go soon, not that she really wanted to leave the lovely afternoon they'd been having.

"Good afternoon Elliot" Olivia greeted as she watched Elliot walk over towards her by the swing.  
"Good afternoon, thank you for looking after Lizzie" Elliot greeted as Olivia lifted Chloe out of her swing. The little girl clearly wanted ot be doing something else right now and it looked like the slide.  
"It was my pleasure, Chloe and I loved the company" Olivia asked as she placed the little girl on the floor and followed her as she ran off to the slide. She hoped Elliot wouldn't think she was ignoring him, she just couldn't stay in one spot with Chloe. Thankfully it appeared he knew and she could tell he was following her around the playground too.  
"Chloe is Miss Benson's daughter, she's really young but really cute. She's one and a half" Elizabeth said, taking it upon herself to explain what was going on whilst Elliot just watched the little girl. He had been so wrapped up in his business when the twins were that age, he didn't remember too much with them around that age. He knew he would have had a role in their life but he knew their mother probably took more of a role.

"She's adorable" Elliot replied as Olivia smiled at him whilst helping Chloe up the playground to the top of the slide.  
"Chloe, Elliot said something really nice about you, can you say thank you?" Olivia encouraged the little girl as she sat at the top of the slide"  
"Dank you" Chloe responded, before pushing herself down the slide and repeated the process to go down the slide again.

"Did you have fun playing soccer?" Olivia asked, turning the conversation to Elliot rather than herself.  
"We did, Elizabeth was not so much interested but I enjoyed the time with Dickie" Elliot explained as he watched Elizabeth take over from Olivia in helping Chloe on the slide. He couldn't help but smile at how big she looked next ot the adorable little girl, so the adults could stand back watching.  
"I watched you guys a big, you have quite the little soccer player in Dickie"  
"He is. Though he's much more interested in basketball at school or something else though. What about you though? You play any sports?"  
"Between work and this little one, I barely have time for myself never mind anything else. Besides, a toddler is kind of like a constant sport anyway" Olivia laughed. Elliot just nodded as he didn't have any experience in that as he'd not been around as much as he would have liked when the twins were that young.

"Did you get any resolve with your nanny?" Olivia asked a couple of minutes later after watching the young girls playing.  
"I've still not heard from her at all. I know she's been reading my text messages though as she still has that setting on her phone. I tried calling a few of the people on that list you gave me, but the ones I spoke to all seemed to be booked up or weren't taking anyone new on"  
"Yes, unfortunately it can get like that. Those are some of the best in the city so they generally get clients very quickly and book up. Sorry about that" Olivia apologised, feeling guilty that Elliot hadn't found an answer just yet.  
"I honestly don't know what I'm going to do next week. I have a series of really important meetings that I can't simply sit out of as it's with a new hotel location. But they are going to go till after the school day is done and at the moment I don't have anyone to pick up the kids" Elliot explained. He didn't know why but something about Olivia really made him feel like he could tell her anything and he knew he really shouldn't. But she was just a really great listener and always seemed to be able to be able to provide the best advice on any situation. It really made sense now though why this was, she was a mother and so she knew what parenting was like.

"Hmm let me make a few calls and see if my nanny knows anyone who might be looking for clients and can look after your kids. If that doesn't work though then either I can look after your kids till you are done or my nanny, Lucy can look after them and I'll organise something else for Chloe" Olivia suggested.  
"You don't have t-"  
"I'll see what I can do and send you an email" Olivia placed her hand on Elliot's arm and tried ot get him to relax. She was pretty confident they would get this all resolved.  
"How about I give you my direct mobile number and you can just let me know that way rather than a letter or an email. I'm sure a call would be much better" Elliot suggested and Olivia agreed. A call would be much better but surely a man of his fame and wealth didn't just want to be giving out his number.  
"Are you sure?"  
"You're helping me out in more ways than I can explained. I really think it would be easier if we could communicate over the phone rather than email or letters. We are supposed to be in the 21st Century after all" Elliot explained. Olivia just didn't want someone to feel like they had to give out their number if they didn't want to.

* * *

Later that evening, Elliot was sitting on Elizabeth's bed, tucking her in for the night. It would be a really big day tomorrow morrow with an early morning start for him with a few meetings with partners in England first thing in the morning. Monday's often meant lots of meetings on things that were going to happen over that week.  
"So, I won't be here when you get up in the morning as I have important meetings at work. But Bertie is going to help you get ready for school and will take you there in the car. Then Miss Benson will look after you for the afternoon and bring you back here. But I promise you, I will be home for reading, homework and dinner tomorrow night" Elliot explained, letting his daughter know what was going on tomorrow.  
"Why won't you be there?" Elizabeth asked.  
"I have a really busy day of meetings and some of them are going to go really late so I can't be there to pick you up in town. But Miss Benson offered to do that when I saw her today"  
"Miss Benson really helps up a lot. I was happy to see her at the park today and meet Chloe. Were you happy to see her daddy?"  
"It was a surprise but it was nice. I can tell you really like her"  
"She's the bestest teacher ever, and her daughter is really cute"  
"She is, now it's time to sleep as you're going to need all that energy tomorrow for more learning" Elliot said as he held the quilt up as Elizabeth got comfortable. Once she was tucked under the bedding, he pressed a kiss to her head.  
"Sleep well little princess, I love you"  
"Love you daddy" Elizabeth said as Elliot made his way out of the room. He checked on Dickie and reminded his son of the plans for tomorrow. Dickie was a little uncomfortable with staying with Miss Benson but Elliot explained that Dani had disappeared, so they were simply trying to deal wit it all the best they could.

Once both children were tucked in bed, Elliot made his way to the bar and grabbed a beer from the bar fridge before taking a seat on the lounge. Being a penthouse suite apartment, from his living room the windows opened up over the New York City Skyline. Elliot had found himself really enjoying sitting and looking out into the world on evenings like this, where he could easily get lost in his thoughts. Tonight, his thoughts were drifting to everything that had happened today and especially at the park. He couldn't quite put in to words how grateful he was that she'd actually been there and together they had come up with a plan for this week. Elliot wasn't sure exactly what was happening with him but he was finding himself growing to really enjoy spending time with Olivia. He enjoyed spending time with her and talking with her more than he'd found with anyone else in a long time. Olivia provided fantastic advice and he could easily tell she had a passion to helping children.

He felt like he could tell her anything and she would listen to him talk it out before knowing exactly what to say in response to him. It was like she knew exactly what he needed to hear, when he needed to hear it. She also had a beautiful little girl who looked very much like her and Elliot couldn't help to think what an amazing mother Olivia was with the little girl today and how much more of an incredible woman that made her. It almost scared Elliot with how much he enjoyed spending time with Olivia today, outside of the classroom and school environment. It almost scared him how much she had been playing on his mind since they left the park. He was sure that it wasn't normal for him to be spending this much time thinking about her, as it wasn't normal for a father to spend this much time thinking about his child's teacher But there was just something about Olivia that really intrigued him, something that made him want to properly get to know her.

_**A/N: Wow so Dani is definitely out of the picture right? Olivia's going to maybe look after the twins or is she going to let Elliot borrow Lucy as his Nanny? Hmmm i guess we'll simply have to wait and see. Next Chapter; The first afternoon pick up, how do things go? More thoughts from Elliot about Olivia, i wonder why he's thinking about her so much? What is he thinking?**_

_**Let me know what you thought of this chapter by leaving a review, i love to read what you thought and where you think this is going next, some of you are unbelievably close to where it is heading too, so good work.  
**__**Until Next Time ;)**_


	11. Afternoon Pickups

**Chapter 11**

Olivia had the first hour of the school day off teaching today, so she'd taken that as a sign not to go into school quite so early. Thus, she had taken a little bit longer with Chloe to get ready this morning and do the daily daycare drop off. This week, Olivia was going to be doing things a little bit differently to the way things usually were, considering she'd be looking after Elizabeth and Richard in the afternoon. Olivia had talked this through with Lucy, giving her the opportunity to get extra pay with looking after the Stabler twins. But they'd agreed it would likely be best to keep Chloe's routine the same as much as possible this week, with her looking after Chloe and Olivia looking after the Stabler twins. It was likely the schedule would change a little with Lucy staying back longer in the evening but it wasn't really a change for Chloe or anything. But Lucy had also agreed to help Olivia out by providing a list of more nannies' that she knew who might be looking for new clients. Olivia was insistent on there being all the relevant documentation provided for these women before she would even suggest them to Elliot. Elliot Stabler had quite the high calibre and would only accept the best in those looking after his kids. That was what he thought he'd had with Dani but that clearly just hadn't been the case, and Elliot learnt that the hard way. Due to this though, Olivia wanted to put other steps in place first to minimise the risk of events reoccurring or Elliot and his kids getting hurt.

After the daycare drop off, Olivia took a slight detour on her journey to school, she went past the local café to grab a morning coffee and a bagel for breakfast as she didn't eat before she left. Then as she reached the school, in the remaining time off she had, she held a quick meeting with Clara about what this week was going to consist of and then touched base with a few other staff members about a variety of issues. Olivia was surprised by how quickly her free hour passed when she had a million and one things to do. She was just on her way to pick up her class from their release teacher, when her hip vibrated, signalling she had a new message.

**Elliot: I just wanted to say thank you for looking after my kids this afternoon for me. I promise I will try and get the nanny situation sorted so we don't take up too much of your afternoons but I'm really sorry for any inconvinence in the mean time. Also thank you again for looking after Lizzie at the park yesterday :) **Olivia read the message and smiled, the text was really sweet and she appreciated the thank you from Elliot. She didn't feel it was really necessary as she didn't mind helping out and she really cared for Elizabeth and Richard, but she appreciated it all the same.

Now that Olivia had come to know more about the backstory for the Stabler family and spent a lot of time with Elizabeth, there really wasn't anything that Olivia wouldn't do to help that family out where she could. Not to mention that she actually really liked helping people in general and Elliot needed her help at the moment.  
**Olivia: Your most welcome, I'm glad that I can help you out. Your kids are going to be perfectly fine and I will make sure they get everywhere they need to at the time they need to. Lucy is going to compile a list for me of the different nannies that she knows are good and are looking for work, so I'll get that for you when I can. But don't worry, I've told her they need to have relevant paperwork and be legitimate before she gives them to me. I hope you're meetings are going well today! **Olivia quickly replied before walking into the classroom.

* * *

Elizabeth walked out of the school building with Miss Benson and the rest of her class, quickly scanning her eyes across the playground. She knew her father wasn't going to be there to pick her up today but she still wanted to check anyway. She knew that everything this afternoon would be ok even without her father there, she was going to be with Miss Benson and Miss Benson would look after her. But Elizabeth still had a nervous feeling about it all because it was different to what she was used to. Olivia could tell that the little girl was nervous about everything, as there was a change this afternoon to what they had been used to.  
"So, you're a nanny now too?" Mandy asked as she walked over to Olivia with Dickie close by her.  
"I'm just helping out for a couple of days whilst Mr Stabler works a few things out for a new nanny" Olivia dismissed, she didn't want there to be the start of any drama.

"Miss Benson, did daddy tell you about dance and basketball practice? It's Monday and we have to go" Dickie asked, drawing the adults out of their discussion whilst the last few of their combined classes were picked up.  
"He did, and I know that it's basketball first and then we go to dance after that. But there was one thing that we have to stop to do and I don't think your dad told me about" Olivia commented.  
"What's that? I don't think there is anything else today?" Elizabeth asked, they didn't do anything else on Monday afternoons other than dance and basketball.  
"Well, I don't know about you two but I'm starving, I think there's a monster growling in my stomach and it needs to be fed. So what do you say we stop and get afternoon tea on the way?" Olivia asked causing both kids to cheer, Olivia was starting to feel more confident this afternoon would go well.  
"Alright, well I hope you three have a good afternoon" Mandy farewelled the trio as they made their way inside so Olivia could grab her things from the classroom before they headed out for the afternoon.

* * *

**Olivia: Afternoon pick up was a success, stopped for an afternoon snack and then we're going to basketball court. Just thought you'd like to know :) **Elliot saw his phone light up with a new message, whilst he tried to focus through one of his final meetings for the day. He was relieved that this afternoon had gone well so far for Olivia and the twins. He hoped that when he eventually made it home tonight, he would continue to hear positive stories about this afternoon. Elliot was grateful that Olivia had texted him with an update on this afternoon's pick up, clearly she had known that he would be thinking about it and wanting to know how it was going. Elliot knew that Elizabeth in particular, didn't always take well to many changes, particularly after everything that she had been through with Kathy leaving when she was young and then the whole Dani incident.

Elliot had been concerned about how Elizabeth would handle these changes, which was why he had made specific mention to let her know last night what was going to happen this afternoon. But one of the biggest positives with this change was that Olivia was Elizabeth's classroom teacher and the little girl really trusted Olivia more than she could say. Elliot knew that with Olivia as the one looking after them, Elizabeth would be fine. Elliot was grateful for Olivia's passion towards children and teaching, going above and beyond for his daughter in this way. It was particularly special that she was prepared to spend extra time looking after his kids when he now knew that she had a daughter of her own at home who needed Olivia's attention just as much but Olivia was putting that on hold for his kids.

**Elliot: Glad to hear it's going well. I look forward to the stories about what you all get up when I get home tonight. Thank you for looking after them for me, I know it's not really part of your job or what you have to od but I really appreciate it! **Elliot quickly responded, he didn't want to look away from the presentation he was watching but he needed to give Olivia a response. Normally, he tried to minimise the distractions from his work, particularly when he was in meetings like this as they had a lot of important things to discuss. However, his children were just as important and keeping in contact with Olivia because of his children, was just as important to Elliot.  
**Olivia: I really don't mind. A teacher's role doesn't stop the moment a child leaves the classroom at the end of the day. Your children's welfare and happiness is the priority right now and I don't mind helping out where I can. That offer of help extends to you as well you know :) **Olivia replied once again, much quicker than Elliot had expected though. He knew he was very lucky to have someone like Olivia around to help out. He knew she wasn't like other teachers out there and there would be other teachers who wouldn't go as far for his children as she did. She was an amazing teacher.

As Elliot continued to try and focus on the presentation in front of him for the designs of the new hotel in Florida, his thoughts drifted away from the board room. His thoughts drifted towards the exact teacher whom he was texting with about his children. There was just something about Olivia that Elliot was really drawn to and finding himself to be more and more interested in. He laid awake for several hours last night just staring at the ceiling in his bedroom and thinking about her, thinking about the afternoon at the park which they shared. He'd had a long chat with Elizabeth about Olivia before and it was clear how much the little girl really adored Olivia and how she had been very excited to see her favourite teacher at the park. However, something within Elliot found himself wanting to spend more time with Olivia, away from the classroom and this genuinely surprised him. He didn't think he should be feeling this way towards a teacher nor did he think that it was appropriate for him to be doing so. But at the end of the day, he was a single man and Olivia was a very attractive lady, so Elliot just couldn't help himself.

However, she had a young daughter, so it was highly likely she had a husband or someone else significant in her life as well. There was simply no way that now he knew what he knew, Olivia would still be on the dating market. He knew that she was really only trying to help him out whilst he needed the help and the feelings or thoughts, he might be having towards her, were in no way reciprocated by her towards him. Elliot knew that if Olivia had a husband and he had been in that man's shoes, he wouldn't want another man to think so strongly about his wife. Olivia and Elliot were just friends, that was all they were ever really going to be. _She's a teacher, she's just trying to show love and concern for her students. She has a daughter so there is no way she's available, pull yourself together man_ Elliot tried to berate himself as he readjusted his sitting position within his chair. He tried to turn his attention from thoughts of Olivia to the presentation once more. The designs for the new hotel were still needing to be finalised before the building team could get started and thus this meeting really had a strong importance. _But if she was available, you'd want to be quick as there is no way the woman like her would stay that way for long _Elliot gave one last thought as he checked his phone once more to see if there were any new messages from Olivia. He just had to get this meeting and one more out the way and then he could actually go home.

_**A/N: Thoughts? Let me know in the review. I'm so glad ot see so many of you enjoying this story and eagerly wanting more. Also welcome to all of my new readers, i'm so glad your here, and i hope you continue to be drawn into the story.  
Until Next Time ;)**_


	12. Monday Afternoons

_**A/N: So i'm personally really happy with this chapter and i think there are some really cute moments within this chapter. Things between Olivia and Elliot are changing and I think it's for the better. But brace yourself...it may be calm now and you may think Dani is gone but...well...we'll have to see. There are some BIG things happening over the next chapters so brace yourselves! But on that final note, i hope you enjoy this chapter and let me know what you think by leaving a review :)  
**_

**Chapter 12**

The afternoon went way better than Olivia had expected it would, she managed to get work done with both Elizabeth and Richard whilst they had their different extra events this afternoon. She worked with Lizzie on her spelling whilst they were watching Dickies basketball practice and then she worked with Dickie on his spelling whilst Lizzie was in dance. She could see that both of them had made significant improvements with their learning in the past couple of weeks and knew that Mandy had to be as proud of Dickie as she felt for Lizzie. They even managed to get a start on their homework before they got home. But they finished it off with Olivia once at home, before dinner and whilst waiting for Elliot to come home.

Olivia had a call from Lucy after she picked Chloe up from daycare and explained that she would have Chloe fed before Olivia got home tonight. However, Olivia hoped that she was able to get home in time for the bath and bedtime routine. There was nothing Olivia loved more than being able to do that nightly routine with Chloe and be the last one she sees before she sleeps because Olivia isn't always the first one she sees when she wakes up.  
"Miss Benson" Richard asked as he looked up from his homework.  
"Yes?" Olivia asked, looking over from where she had been working on a few school related documents whilst the twins did their homework.  
"Are you going to be looking after us all the time now? In the morning too?" Richard asked, Olivia hadn't thought about it. She didn't know how long it would take Elliot to organise a new nanny, she imagined that she would be looking after them for at least this week but didn't know after that. But there was no way that she could manage to look after them for Elliot in the mornings too. She would not have enough time to get everything organised with Chloe, drop her at daycare, get across town via public transport to pick up the twins and still get to school on time. Not to mention that Olivia needed to get to school early in the morning to be able to get things done and so if Elliot needed someone in the morning too, it couldn't be her.

"Um, I'm not sure sweetie. I won't be looking after you in the mornings too because I won't have time to get here before I have to be at school. But I might be the one looking after you for the rest of the week, after school. Is that ok?" Olivia suggested.  
"Yes! I'd really want you to look after us" Richard replied, eagerly.  
"You're much better than Dani" Elizabeth chimed in.  
"Dani wasn't that bad...she was nice too like Miss Benson, you were just really naughty" Dickie retaliated to his sister. Olivia knew she had to step in before this got out of hand.  
"Alright you two, that's enough. It's sad that Dani had to go away and I know your daddy is working very hard to find another nanny for you but for now I think I'll just have to do ok?" Olivia interfered, whilst also trying to end the conversation about who would be looking after them as she really didn't know anymore than they did at this stage.  
"But I really do like when you look after us, Miss Benson" Richard explained, clearly he was suddenly feeling the need to explain himself and his thoughts.  
"Me too" Elizabeth echoed which made Olivia smile, she too had really enjoyed this afternoon with the twins.

* * *

Elliot felt exhausted as he walked in through the downstairs private entrance to the hotel and made his way to the elevator. He felt like he had been talked at completely all day and his brain was literally mush. He wasn't sure how the twins were going to be when he made it upstairs but he just hoped they hadn't caused too much trouble for Olivia. He knew first-hand how much trouble they could cause when they wanted to.  
"Ah Mr Stabler, welcome back. Did the meetings go well today?" One of the receptionists asked as they spotted Elliot waiting for elevator.  
"Yes thank you, but I'm not really up to discussions right now" Elliot dismissed, hoping they would get the message he didn't want to talk. But the receptionist was persistent.  
"Just quickly sir, we had a lady called Dani come in today and request specifically to speak with you? We told her you weren't available but sir, what should be do if she returns again?" the young man asked just before the elevator opened. Elliot knew he would need to respond to this before going upstairs but why was Dani contacting them now? Elliot grabbed his card from inside his jacket pocket and handed it to the young man.  
"If she contacts you again, just inform her that she needs to get in contact with my assistant who will set up a meeting, it's regarding a personal matter and I don't want to discuss it right now. So if you'll excuse me, I want to get upstairs and see my children" Elliot farewelled the other receptionist and entered the elevator. The minute the doors closed, Elliot let out a slight groan. Why was Dani contacting him now? It had been at least 4 days since he'd tried to meet up with her, he wasn't going to just do what she wanted. He also wasn't interested in re-hiring her again.

The elevator doors opened and Elliot walked out into his penthouse apartment to find the living room empty. He would have thought his kids would be there when he got home, just relaxing before dinner. He knew that Dinner wasn't ready yet but it smelt like it wouldn't be far off.  
"Daddy" Elizabeth called and Elliot turned just in time to find his little girl running out of the dining room towards him.  
"Hi honey" Elliot greeted as he embraced his little girl and placed a kiss on her head.  
"Miss Benson helpded us to get homework done before you got home, she didn't want you to have to worry as she said she knew you'd be tired and we'd be tired" Elizabeth tried to explain as she dragged Elliot back towards the dining room. Elliot spotted Olivia standing next to Dickie, helping him. _Beautiful _Elliot thought as he took a moment to admire Olivia. She was in a deep blue dress which he thought she looked stunning in. Her dress today was more professional than what she was wearing when he'd last seen her at the park on the weekend but it would make sense considering she had been working all day.

"Elliot, Welcome home" Olivia greeted, smiling briefly as she looked up at him.  
"Hi Daddy" Richard greeted.  
"Hey" Elliot smiled as he made his way around the table to see what they were working on. He watched closely as Olivia covered the last spelling word for this week and Dickie tried to write it down from memory. He wrote all of it almost correctly, but he'd just mixed a couple of letters at the end the wrong way round but noticed it enough to quickly change it before getting the answer. As he was correct, Olivia gave him a high 5.  
"Good work buddy and don't worry about the ones we got wrong, I'm sure you're going to be a spelling pro by the time the test comes around on Friday" Olivia encouraged as Dickie gave her a hug and thanked her for helping him.  
"Well, your dad's home now so I guess that's my cue that it's time to leave. Well done today and I'll see you tomorrow"  
"Bye Miss Benson, thank you for helping us" the twins echoed.  
"Alright you two, go wash up before dinner and I'll just see Miss Benson out" Elliot requested, both twins nodded in agreement before hugging Olivia once more and rushing off to wash their hands.

* * *

Elliot watched on as Olivia made quick work to gather her things together and place them all in her bag. She was a very organised person that was for sure and it seemed that everything had a set place, which Elliot actually admired a lot. If he was honest, Elliot admired Olivia in a lot of ways and was grateful that she had been so willing to look after his kids today.  
"So how were they really?" Elliot asked as he walked with Olivia towards the elevator.  
"They were really good, we went to basketball and dance today without any issues and I did the home reading with whichever twin wasn't doing something, at both times. You have 2 very smart kids there Elliot and I can already tell that they are going to really go far with their learning. They've made such big improvements already. How were your meetings?" Olivia asked as she grabbed her coat from the rack near the elevator. Elliot rushed to hold it out for her like a gentleman.  
"Long and very tiring but I did appreciate the texts you sent me to let me know pick up had gone well, it kept me going through the meetings. But business is always changing and that means meetings are required I suppose, even if they are unbelievably boring. Oh by the way, I really appreciate that you were willing to look after the twins for me today" Elliot stated, remembering that it was important to let people know you appreciate them when you do.  
"Your most welcome, they are honestly lovely kids and we had a lot of good conversations but I hope you don't want me to look after them before school as well"

"Oh no no no, I know you are much to busy for that and I would never expect it. I also don't intend to take up too many of your afternoons either"  
"I don't mind looking after them in the afternoon though, now you don't even have to ask, I've already arranged my schedule so I can look after them tomorrow as well for you"  
"Thank you, that reminds me though, Dani has apparently tried to get in touch with me today"  
"Oh really?" Olivia enquired, she hadn't seen that coming.  
"Yeah, I was a little concerned when my receptionist downstairs told me and wanted to know what to do if she comes back again" Elliot explained.  
"What did you say? I mean it's been a few days since she didn't turn up to your meeting"  
"Yeah, I know. I handed the card with my assistant's number to the reception and told them to contact her if Dani comes back again. My assistant will them make the appointment and it will be so much worse if Dani skips it again. I much prefer my assistant to handle my communication as she does it so well" Elliot explained and Olivia took this as a sign she needed to get the number of his assistant should she need to get in touch with him again.  
"Riight, so I think I'm going ot have to get that number for if I need to contact you" Olivia stated and Elliot realised she had mis-interpreted what he had said, he preferred Olivia to contact him directly but didn't want to hear from Dani.

"What? No!? I mean, you have my direct number and I don't want that to change, you can contact me directly" Elliot tried to back pedal as the pair stood in silence for a couple of minutes, feeling a little awkward all of a sudden.  
"Daad, can we eat now? We washed our hands" Dickie called out, interrupting the conversation.  
"Coming!" Elliot called back.  
"On that note, it think it's time I was getting home" Olivia made her apologies and called for the elevator.  
"The car is waiting for you out front"  
"You don't ne-"  
"You have looked after my kids all afternoon and taken them all over the city to their different things. The least I can do is make sure that you get home safely as I really don't think I want to get on Chloe or your husband's bad side for making you get home too late" Elliot joked as the elevator doors opened, Olivia had to laugh at his comment.  
"Well I don't have a husband so I don't think he'd object but I'd avoid Chloe's bad side, she may be small but she's fierce. Good night Elliot" Olivia joked as she entered the elevator and waited for the doors to close.  
"Just like her mother then, Good Night Olivia, thank you again for today" Elliot replied as the elevator doors closed and she was gone. _So, she's single then _Elliot thought remembering how much he had debated it earlier today. Elliot took a deep breath and headed back towards the dining room, he wanted to eat dinner and hear from his kids about their day.

* * *

Olivia thanked the driver of the car as he pulled up outside the apartment building. Her building certainly wasn't as lavish as the penthouse apartment that the stabler's lived in. The building was a redbrick apartment building with 4 storeys and about 12 apartments. Olivia and Chloe called apartment 3A home. It really wasn't much of an apartment and it was possible that she could afford something a little nicer now if she wanted but Olivia thought her apartment showed character. Not to mention it was the first place that was ever actually hers, so she was happy and protective of it. Apartment 3A had 2 bedrooms and 1 bathroom with a bath/shower combo, it was smaller in size than what she probably liked and Olivia knew that as Chloe got older they might have to look elsewhere but it was good for now. The elevator in the building was rather old and had a big habit of breaking down, which made it fun when Olivia had to go out with Chloe and had to take the stroller too. But today, was one of the few but lucky days where the elevator actually worked so she could take it for a ride up to the third floor.

Olivia unlocked her front door and could instantly hear laughter, meaning Chloe was already in the bath. She placed her things down by the door and headed for the bathroom, finding Chloe sitting in the bath talking away and Lucy who looked a little wet so Chloe had clearly made a mess.  
"Chloe Benson, have you been causing a mess here?' Olivia laughed as she made her presence in the room known.  
"Momma!" Chloe called out, looking up at her mother and instantly reaching out for her so Olivia walked just a little closer.  
"Hi baby girl, have you had a good afternoon with Lucy?" Olivia asked.  
"We certainly did, we had pasta for dinner and then because of how much fun she'd had with that, we had to take a big bath before mom got home"  
"Oops"  
"Yeah, I think that's a big oops miss Chloe"  
"I can finish up here with her though if you want to go change"  
"Would you? That would be fantastic, thank you" Olivia smiled as the younger woman agreed, and disappeared into her bedroom to change into something more comfortable. Today had been a long day and Olivia felt exhausted but she was glad with everything that had happened today.

_**A/N; Next chapter - Dani...and i think that's enough said ;D  
**__**Until Next Time ;)**_


	13. Discussions about Dani

_**A/N: Thank you for all your lovely reviews, some of you have provided some really helpful feedback and thinking points for me. Thank you also to those of you who have pm'd me with little things that you have picked up on, that some of them i'd not even picked up on. Please enjoy this next chapter and I'm going to try and get another chapter up for you later today, to make for not posting in almost a week.I thought it had only been just before the weekend, but apparently not o.o  
However, without further ado, here is the next chapter :)**_

**Chapter 13**

Tuesday ran pretty much like clockwork for a school day, Olivia was able to get Chloe organised and off to daycare in time to head to work. Chloe had been a little more fussy and clingy to her this morning, but Olivia put that down to the fact that their normal schedule had changed in these last couple of days and she was adjusting. Chloe had been used to Olivia being home before dinner or bath time as that was something that Olivia had put the emphasis on being there for. But now helping out Elliot with the twins and his home times, made her rather unpredictable and she couldn't always guaranteed that she would be there for dinner and bath time with Chloe. Whilst she was only 18 months old, the little girl knows the routine and notices changes, Olivia knew she did. Olivia couldn't help but wonder that if her role in looking after the Stabler twins in the afternoon became a longer thing, could she work out a way to have Chloe there in the afternoons as well? So at least her little girl wouldn't lose time with Olivia or feel a little left out with the extended absence. That was something she was definitely going to have to think about for sure.

The afternoon arrived and Olivia was looking after Elizabeth and Richard again, but this afternoon didn't have quite so many different activities planned as they were on Mondays and Wednesdays. Monday was the usual basketball and dance practice, whilst Wednesday was swimming lessons. But the swimming lessons were held privately in the hotel pool rather than elsewhere so really all they had to do was go home and get ready on Wednesdays. The private lessons at home was something that Elliot had established as a way to encourage Dickie and Elizabeth to do their best and at the time it had been also to minimise the different places Dani had to get the twins to.

However, today was Tuesday and that meant they didn't have anything on and so they were just going to go home and hang out at the penthouse. Olivia intended to let the twins chill out for a bit, unwind from their busy day at school and then work on homework with them till Elliot got home. She was also intending to ask Elliot if she could bring Chloe over tomorrow afternoon with his kids, if he still needed her to get them. At least then Olivia wouldn't feel quite so guilty for choosing other kids over her own. Olivia couldn't see Elliot having any particular objection to it, but it was more professional for her to ask him first than just assume he'd be fine. As they would be in his house anyway. Olivia didn't want to make things with Elliot awkward or hard when they were in a good and comfortable place with each other.

* * *

Tuesday, for Elliot was more laidback in terms of work than Monday had been. He still had numerous required meetings that he had to attend and work through but they weren't as long as his Monday's or even as tiring as the Monday's. This meant that Elliot was feeling pretty confident that he would get to go home earlier than he had yesterday. Elliot honestly felt like he had slept really well last night and managed to be around to be able to take the kids to school but he'd not gone in with them or stuck around after that. His dreams had been filled with a certain teacher that he had spent a lot of time thinking about yesterday, the same one who happened to be babysitting in the afternoon for him as well. Elliot knew he would get the chance to see Olivia this evening more personally, when he got home from work, so he didn't feel the need to go into school and see her this morning. That wasn't to say that he didn't want to, because he really did, it was just more that he didn't feel like he had the need to go and see her in the morning. He didn't want Olivia thinking that he was desperate for her attention, he just really liked having her around and found that he could talk to her easily. He hoped that maybe they would get more of a chance to talk tonight too, if he got home that little bit earlier and she didn't have to rush off quite so quickly. Elliot hoped she wasn't in a rush to leave tonight.

"Excuse me, Mr Stabler?" Ashley asked as she appeared at Elliot's office doorway.  
"Yes?" Elliot invited her into his office.  
"I have a Dani on the line sir, she's requesting to speak with you now and she is adamant that she won't make an appointment. She continues to get aggravated every time I bring up an appointment and I wanted to know what you wanted me to do?" Ashley asked, Elliot had known this would likely be the case when Dani made contact. He knew when he gave out the business card last night, that Dani would contact the hotel, they'd give the number, so she'd call the number and then get frusterated by having to make an appointment. However, Dani had been the one to stand him up last time so he wasn't just going to give in to her orders through the phone but it wasn't fair to leave Dani with Ashley, at least it wasn't fair to Ashley, Elliot didn't care about Dani.

"You can transfer her through to me, Thank you Ashley" Elliot replied and he waited a couple of minutes whilst Ashley went back to her desk and transferred the call through to him. Elliot used this time to take a couple of deep breaths and try remind himself to maintain composure when speaking to Ashley. He thought about the way Olivia would handle things if she was in this situation and what she would have said. Olivia definitely seemed like the type of person who had an answer for everything when he needed one, he wished she was here to advise now.

"Good afternoon Dani" Elliot greeted as he accepted the call from Ashley.  
"Elliot stabler, how thankful I am that you managed to take my call. I'm down here at reception for the hotel and they won't let me go upstairs? I have a few things with me that I have for the twins and I wanted to leave them here before I go and collect them from school, can you fix this?" Dani asked. Are you serious? She really thinks that she can waltz in like this and everything is just going to go back to normal? Elliot thought to himself before proceeding.  
"Yes, sorry Dani, reception have my list of people who have my permission to use the elevator to go to the penthouse" Elliot replied, remaining strictly professional.  
"Which obviously includes me, I'm the nanny and thus I have always shad access upstairs" Dani replied.  
"Not anymore" Elliot kept it short and simple, he wasn't in the hotel at the moment as his office was in a different building but he really hoped he wouldn't have to make the trip back to deal with this today.  
"What?" Dani asked. Taking the 'playing dumb' approach this afternoon I see Elliot thought as he tried to consider the best move forward from here talking with Dani.  
"Dani, you didn't show up for our lunch meeting at the café, and there were a few important time sensitive things I wanted to talk to you about" Elliot explained.  
"But…I'm sorry I just got the date wrong"  
"I called you numerous times and left you messages, it's been 5 days now since our meeting was supposed to happen and you are only contacting me now? I'm sorry but I really don't think this is going to work out" Elliot explained, bracing for impact as he knew Dani wouldn't take this well.

"You can't just fire me like that!? I have rights?!" Dani yelled down the phone line, she wasn't happy at all.  
"I will provide you with a good reference, which I will email you this afternoon and I will make sure all payments have been finalised. But I would prefer it now if you didn't contact me again, and stay away from my children"  
"You can't do thi-"  
"Thank you Dani, I hope you are successful at wherever life takes you from here and I wish you all the best" Ellito said before he disconnected the call. Dani had been a good nanny for him in the past and he really felt he owed it to her now that she had made contact with him, to provide a good reference and make sure she had been paid all he owed her. But he just couldn't take her back on as a nanny right now and he wouldn't. Elliot expected a high level of decency from his employees and this was simply one case where that had been abused to the point he couldn't forgive.

Elliot: You'll never guess who I just had to speak with…Dani! I hope you're day is going well :) Elliot texted Olivia, he felt the need to let her know that Dani had actually made contact with him again.

* * *

The doorman held the car door open for Olivia and the twins to climb out after they arrived back outside the hotel. Olivia had been rather surprised when Elliot's driver had been waiting for them outside of the school gates, she didn't expect to be taken home this way with the kids. They had taken the subway for the activities yesterday and Olivia already knew what would be the best way to get back to the hotel via the subway as well, she had looked it up last night. Sure, the subway wasn't by any means the safest way to go home but it had quite the personality and the kids enjoyed their time on the subway. Olivia had learned to love the subway when she moved to New York and she honestly thought it would be a good experience for the twins to experience other transport than a chauffeured car, even if that is normally how they travel. However, as Elliot had sent his driver to the school this afternoon, with the order to collect Olivia and the twins to take them home safely, she couldn't refuse him.

She had read the message from Elliot during the car journey home and was surprised that Dani had actually made contact, but she hoped the communication that had to be done, had gone well. Olivia didn't want to mention anything to the twins just yet about Dani as she knew it would be unlikely that Dani would be coming back on as the nanny but she wasn't sure exactly what Elliot would do.

O: I hope the conversation went well then. Thanks for the car by the way? I wasn't expecting that at all, but the kids were glad to see your driver Olivia quickly responded as the group headed into the hotel and towards the back elevator which would take them up to the penthouse. They politely greeted the reception staff, a few patrons in the lobby and stood quietly waiting for the elevator.  
E: Well…I'm not sure how it really went to be honest, but I'll tell you more about it alter. I'm aiming to be home slightly earlier than last night Elliot replied again, as the trio rode up to the penthouse apartment.  
"Alright you two, I'm going to give you one hour to relax and then we'll get your homework done as I think your daddy is going to be home earlier tonight" Olivia said as the twins took their things up to their rooms and went about their way. Olivia decided to take a step into the kitchen and see what she coudl make up for afternoon tea. However, she really should have known that she didn't need to do that as Mrs Davis already had two plates of fruit and snacks made up ready to go for the twins. They never even have to raise a finger Olivia thought to herself as she made her way back into the living room, opting to get the marking she needed to do, done before the kids would need her help with their homework.

* * *

Elliot had stuck to his word, he arrived home a whole hour earlier than last night for his kids. He was tired from the day, as always but he was very glad to be home. He had seen to both of his kids and then signalled to Olivia that he wanted to talk to her and to take a step away slightly from where she was helping Dickie with his reading. He wanted to explain the details of everything with Dani to her. Elliot guided Olivia to his study to discuss this whilst keeping the door ajar if the twins needed them and Bertie explained she would keep an eye on them if needed.

"So you spoke to Dani? Did she contact you again?" Olivia asked as the pair stepped into the study and over to Elliot's desk.  
"Yeah, she apparently turned up downstairs earlier today, trying to get up to the apartment" Elliot confirmed as he leant against the edge of his desk and looked up at Olivia.  
"But she wasn't allowed?" Olivia queried. She could tell from his body language that this was leading to a big discussion but she really appreciated that Elliot wanted to keep her in the loop.  
"No, there are really very few people who have access and I update the list at the front when needed. I most recently updated it on Sunday afternoon with the team after you agreed to look after my troublesome two, so you have access up here now and she doesn't" Elliot explained to which Olivia thanked him for access.  
"How'd she take that though?" Olivia asked.  
"Not well, in fact I don't know what she's going to do next now"  
"So you didn't hire her back then?"  
"What? No! I would never, after the lack of communication on her part, she explained she forgot about our lunch and her phone died and so she didn't have the ability to call me about it" Elliot explained Dani's explanation as to why she'd missed their lunch but Elliot wasn't really buying it.  
"But it's been 5 days?" Olivia queried.

"Exactly my point, a phone can be charged, so she had plenty of opportunity to call me and explain herself"

"So, what are you going to do now?"  
"I'm not sure, I've written her a good reference and I sent it to her via email, I ensured her pay is up to date to when she last worked for me. She really has nothing else that she needs from me but I have this bad feeling. But that reminds me, how much do I owe you?" Elliot asked, grabbing his wallet from his jacket pocket, ready to give money to Olivia. But she didn't need payment, she wasn't looking after his kids for him, so she could get extra money, she was doing it because she wanted to help him.  
"You don't owe me anything" Olivia answered.  
"You've looked after my kids for two afternoons already, I need to pay you something, as I'm taking up your afternoons"  
"The chauffeured car ride this afternoon was enough payment, I really don't need anything else" Olivia convinced him as she softly placed a hand on his arm, enforcing that she really didn't need payment.  
"You're being too nice" Elliot remarked as he placed the wallet back in his suit jacket and looked up at her.  
"No, I'm being a good friend" Olivia said whilst Elliot placed his hand over hers and gave it a light squeeze. She was really being a good friend and he couldn't appreciate it more than he already did from this gesture to look after his kids.

**_A/N: So what did you think of this chapter? Leave me a review and let me know, i really appreciate each and every one and all of you. Next Chapter: More of an insight with Dani, Olivia gets a call from an old friend which leads to thoughts about a certain business man...Hmm i wonder what will happen? Guess you'll have to wait and find out soon!_**

**_Until next time!_**


	14. Friendly Conversations

**Chapter 14 - Friendly Conversations**

Olivia had just managed to get Chloe down for the evening after 2 books and rocking in her arms for a while, when her mobile started to ring. Olivia didn't have a landline number, so her mobile was her main method of contact with the world around her. But that didn't mean she knew who was calling her at this time. She knew her father wouldn't call after 7pm and she didn't expect that the call would be Elliot.  
"Hello?" Olivia answered the call.  
"Hey stranger!" Alex greeted and Olivia smiled into the phone, she hadn't spoken with her best friend in a really long time and it felt really good to hear her on the other end right now.  
"Oh my gosh, Alex! It's been so long!" Olivia greeted warmly.  
"Well you know, I figured that it had been a while and I should really call. How is everything? How's Chloe?" Alex asked, wanting ot hear as much information about her friend and god daughter as she could.  
"She's really good, she misses you though. We were looking at pictures of you tonight before bed and she asked where you were" Olivia explained, smiling at how Chloe had reacted so fondly at a couple of pictures of Alex and other friends and family.  
"Soon, I promise, I miss both of you" Alex agreed.  
"You know I'll hold you to that. But anyway, enough about me, how are things with you?" Olivia asked, wanting not to talk about herself so much but more talk about her friend.

"They're really good! I just got a promotion and I've started seeing someone recently" Alex explained.  
"really? Alex Congratulations! That's fantastic news about the job and the new relationship too"  
"Its…It's very new but I feel like it's off to a good start. How about you? Is there anyone you want to talk about? Maybe an interest or something?" Alex asked, Olivia just had to roll her eyes at her friend even when she can't be seen. Every time Olivia and Alex spoke there would always be questions about her relationships or her love life and it was really something Olivia didn't want to talk about. There really was no one on the scene at the moment and it wasn't like Olivia was particularly looking. She was so busy with work and Chloe and life in general at the moment that even if she wanted to, she didn't have time to date. Especially now she had offered up her spare time to look after Elizabeth and Richard as well as everything else in her daily life.  
"No…Oh, I've started to look after a one of the kids in my class, after school" Olivia remarked, unsure exactly why she was telling her friend this but feeling it was important.  
"Why? Olivia you already do so much for those kids in school on a daily basis, you really don't need to be giving more of your spare time to them as well" Alex replied which surprised Olivia a little as she hadn't expected that reaction from her friend.  
"The little girl's father is a single dad with twins and he's been through a really rough patch lately. I know what that feels like and it is no fun in general, even worse alone. So I wanted to just help out where I can" Olivia tried to explain to her friend but she could already hear the disappointment on the other end of the line.  
"Wait, he's single?" Alex asked which only caused Olivia to roll her eyes again. She was honestly glad this was a phone call and not a facetime call as she could keep her reactions secret but Olivia should have known Alex would focus on the fact Elliot was single more than anything.  
"Stop it" Olivia warned.  
"Stop what?' Alex pleaded ignorance.  
"I know where you are going with this and no, we are not even going there" Olivia replied.

* * *

Olivia had a really lovely chat with Alex, she had brought up some really interesting thinking points. But there had also been moments where Alex had been so far wrong in her thinking that it almost wasn't funny. Olivia knew what Alex was trying to get at and it clearly wasn't going to happen. Once Olivia had mentioned Elliot and that he was single, as far as she knew, Alex didn't have an interest in really talking about much else. Alex was adamant that there had to be something between Olivia and Elliot, particularly in the way that he had only wanted to talk to her specifically about things that were going on in his life, not anyone else. Olivia dismissed this as just being friend and there was nothing more to it, she was definitely more guarded though with the information she spoke about with him. However this wasn't to say that if something really was happening, she wouldn't speak to Alex about it. There just wasn't a lot going on in her life at the moment other than caring for the Stabler twins, caring for Chloe and work. Her life wasn't super eventful or exiting, and there wasn't anything major that she wanted to discuss or felt the need to.

If Olivia was honest though, she could admit to herself, that there was something growing between her and Elliot, or at least she thought so. She had felt it with the time that she spent with him earlier this evening and recently. She particularly felt there was a moment she had the other night with him, just as she was leaving. Olivia often found herself smiling with the communication that she had with Elliot and she felt like there was just a familiar sense of comfort she got from spending time with him. But it was ridiculous to think about as there was no way that any feelings she may have towards Elliot, would be reciprocated towards her by him. There was simply no way that he even saw her as anything more than a friend, which would always be the case. She just felt lucky that Elizabeth was in her class, so she had an excuse to be talking with him or spending time looking after the kids.

She would admit that she really liked the thought of spending time with Elliot and found herself incredibly comfortable around Elliot. But she put all of that down to the fact that he was a really nice man. He also wasn't too bad on the eyes either, if she was honest. She could admit to herself that she had wondered in the past, what it felt like to be held by Elliot, what the feeling of his strong arms around her, protecting her would be like. But it obviously wasn't something that she would ever act on, it wasn't professional or even remotely ok. _Screw you Alex _Olivia thought as she found herself lying in bed that night thinking solely about Elliot. If Alex hadn't put these thoughts into her head about maybe there being something going on between Elliot and Olivia, with the way they were around each other. Then Olivia was sure she'd already be asleep and wouldn't be feeling quite so guilty.

* * *

_Just because you have a business, and you have lots of money, and you are successful, doesn't mean that it's in any way ok for you to push us around like you did _Dani thought to herself as she walked up the street, brushing past numerous people in the process and not apologising once. She was on a mission, she wasn't just going to let the Stabler family walk all over her like that and think everything would be ok, or that its ok to treat people so poorly. She already knew without her, Elliot would have to be looking after his own kids and he would be far from enjoying that. But she knew there was no one else that he would feel even remotely comfortable leaving his kids with, or having them picked up from school by. The man needed her, he needed here help as there would be no way that he would choose to spend the time with his two troublemakers, over work. Dani knew that the twins, with Elliot would be getting home from school soon and thus if she approached him then, there was no way that he could avoid her. Dani knew if she confronted him, they would have the opportunity to talk and she would get her job back easily.

Dani had worked as the nanny to the twins for almost 3 years now, she'd been there for them when their mother walked away, she'd been a huge support for Elliot too. She knew how much Elliot relied on her during this time. She also knew what she was worth to Elliot and she knew that everything that had happened over the past week or so had been one simple misunderstanding. _Richard loves me, Elizabeth is going to learn to accept the way that I am with her and not everyone is meant to love such a brat. There simply isn't a better nanny out there than me and Elliot would never let me go _Dani thought. She knew that Elliot and the twins would be lost without her, she was simply irreplaceable.

Dani knew that she maybe she had messed up in missing the lunch with Elliot but she genuinely had gotten the dates wrong. Her schedule had been all over the place since Elliot returned from his travels and she had simply mistaken the days and her phone was dead. She knew she probably should have charged it but then there were events in her personal life that made her question everything. She had never expected that Elliot would want to meet up with her for lunch, so with she schedule all over the place, what was she supposed to do? She hadn't been in the position to drop everything. Dani could admit that she wasn't perfect and she had never claimed that she was, she simply made a mistake but she couldn't be fired for that, it was not fair. Dani was determined to get her job back, she was prepared to take Elliot down if she really needed to. Dani knew that Elliot needed her more than she needed him. Dani absolutely loved Elizabeth and Richard, she loved Richard more but she still tolerated Elizabeth. Everyone she knew, knew how much she loved those kids and would do absolutely anything for them. Sure, if she got the choice, she would do anything for Richard and not so much Elizabeth. But she wasn't prepared to help a kid who had the brain of a pigeon and took more help than anyone she knew.

Dani didn't see the point in even trying to help Elizabeth when there was so much potential with Richard and he was prepared to put in the work. She couldn't' believe that this would be the issue either as Elliot had to see that when a kid wasn't succeeding, there was no point in over exerting herself to help someone who simply wasn't intelligent enough to get better. But Richard on the other hand, could do absolutely no wrong, the boy was perfect and Dani was sure that Elliot would see that if she could just talk to him. She would make sure that he understood where she was coming from.

Elliot had sent through her reference yesterday, just like he'd said that he would when they were on the phone but that wasn't good enough for Dani. She was determined to get her job back and she knew how to get it. She knew htat the minute she spoke with Elliot, he would see how wrong that he had been with dismissing her like he did, he will give her another chance and everything can go back to the way they were. Though Dani knew that she was going to have to push to have Elliot remove Elizabeth from that Miss Benson's class as Dani was adamant that the woman was doing very little good for Elizabeth. Miss Benson had only caused issues for the family since she decided she was going to step in. In fact, it was Miss Benson that had started all the suspicion about Dani in the first place, and if it wasn't for her deciding she had to stick her nose in it, then nothing would have happened in the first place and Dani would still have her job. Dani was so sure that if things hadn't been disrupted by Miss Benson, then Elliot would be more determined to please her and keep her around with his kids. But Miss Benson had clearly messed with Elizabeth's brain in the classroom during time when she was supposed to be 'learning' and now she was doing the same with Elliot. But Dnai wasn't just going to take it, she wasn't going to let that teacher mess with something that was rightfully hers. _I'll make him see, make him know that he can't live without me and that he's just desperate to take me back. I'll forgive him and we'll start where we left off, he doesn't need Miss Benson and I'll make him see that _Dani thought as the _Sapphire Suites _building came into view.

* * *

Wednesday mornings were when Elliot spent extra time at the hotel itself, with following up on the general running of the day to day things within his hotel. He was very happy with how things were going at this particular branch of his hotel. Elliot was very impressed by the efficiency of the staff and had made a specific post for the managers in the different departments, telling them how impressed he was and to pass it on to their teams. He wanted to show his appreciation for all of his staff and he'd spent this morning doing exactly that, especially as he had found recently that he didn't really do that often and he needed to. This took him right till lunch time when he was meeting a few of his friends, Charlie and Finn for lunch at one of their favourite local restaurants. Elliot tried to catch up with his friends at least once a month and normally they met up in the evening or something. But in this current situation with Elliot having Nanny issues and wanting to be at home in the evening with his kids, it made more sense to go to lunch together instead. Not to mention that Charlie was flying out of town for business early tomorrow morning and thus dinner just wouldn't work.

The trio arranged to meet at the Italian restaurant that was only a few blocks over from Elliot's hotel. He decided today to take the car to lunch rather than walk but there had been times in the past where he had walked over, because he wanted the exercise. Today though, as he was heading into his office after lunch, he figured he would skip the walk to lunch and try get to the gym later. Elliot was a man who liked to keep fit where he could and keep reasonable shape so that he could keep up with his kids and generally just stay healthy. Despite being a father, Elliot really didn't like to let himself go very often as he had quite the appearance in the public eye to keep up with being the face of a multi-million-dollar company. Elliot had to admit though he was really looking forward to the catch up with his friends, there was so much they needed to discuss, there was a lot he felt he needed to catch up on about their lives.

_**A/N: I said i'd ive you 2 chapters today and i did just that! Hope you enjoyed this chapter and let me know what you thought by leaving me a review! I love to read all of them and see exactly what thoughts on the chapters you all had. Next Chapter...Well...things are intense...strap yourselves in because it's about to get rocky...  
**__**Until Next Time ;)**_


	15. Chapter 15

_**A/N: So I could not think of a title for this chapter, not one that would work anyway. So thats why this chapter is entitled 'Chapter 15'. But if you have any ideas or can think of a better name for the chapter, let me know in the reviews along with your thoughts on this chapter. I hope your strapped in because the ride is about to get a little bumpy...**_

**Chapter 15**

Elliot was the first one at the restaurant, which was almost expected as he was going to be the one that was late. Elliot preferred to be early and have to wait a little bit than be late or cause other people to be waiting. However, most of the time, he found himself arriving just at the right time when he needed to. Elliot had called the restaurant ahead of time and booked the table in the upstairs section of the restaurant, it was more private up there and just the way Elliot liked it when he was with his friends. Then, being the first one there, he ordered the first round of drinks for the trio. It was a good thing he was so familiar with what the other two would like to drink.  
"Elliot, my man!" Finn greeted as he walked across the restaurant floor towards the table as Elliot stood up to greet him. He was closely followed by Charlie.  
"Hey Finn, how's it going? Charlie, so glad you could make it!" Elliot greeted the pair.  
"Make it? For you, you know I'm always gonna be here" Charlie remarked as the trio took their seats.

"So, how are the kids? Still causing trouble?" Charlie enquired once they had decided they were all going to eat and placed the orders with the waitress.  
"Well, no more trouble than usual. Now if only the same could be said for some of the help I have" Elliot remarked which surprised his friends.  
"Really? I thought you only hired the best? You've never seemed to have too many issues" Finn asked.  
"So did I, but apparently that is not the case" Elliot remarked, not really giving away too much information on what was going on just yet, it was going to be a long story.  
"What happened man?" Finn asked again, clearly not wanting to continue to skate around this issue like this, wanting to get straight to the point. Elliot recalled his entire event with Dani and the issues she'd been causing for his family as well as the methods that he had gone through, and the support he'd got from Olivia. The two other men were shocked at how someone who was working with kids all the time, like Dani, had been so cruel towards Elliot's kids and so obviously been favouring one over the other.  
Man, that sounds really rough. But this teacher you mention sounds like a god send" Charlie remarked as Elliot finished explaining all the previous events.

"She really is, would you believe, that now, whilst I have no nanny, she's agreeing to be my nanny for free?" Elliot asked, which absolutely shocked his friends.  
"Free of charge? Elliot you have to pay her, it's not in her job description to run a babysitting service free of charge outside of school hours" Charlie remarked.  
"I tried, she won't take my money, says she doesn't need it or want it, she genuinely wanted to help"  
So, she's working for you, out of the goodness of her heart, for free...is she single? She sounds like the perfect girl for me" Charlie remarked again. Charlie was always known to be the one who was more of a player in the trio and there was absolutely no way that Elliot would let him anywhere near Olivia.  
"No... you're not getting near her. She has a kid though, an adorable kid at that"  
"How do you know she has a kid?" Finn asked, suddenly paying more interest in the conversation and the fact that there was more to it than Elliot was letting on.  
"I met her, at the park on Sunday. Beautiful little girl, just like her mother" Elliot commented, thinking back to how cute Chloe was and how perfect of a mother to this little girl, that Olivia was.  
"Hold up, now you're hanging out with her on the weekends too? At a park? Really?" Finn sat up straight, his friend was clearly hiding something.  
"Well I didn't ask her to the park, Olivia just already happened to be there when we were there. Elizabeth spotted her and then whilst I played soccer with Dickie, Olivia offered to look over Elizabeth for me" Elliot tried to explain, hoping they wouldn't dig too much further into this.

"Olivia, what a beautiful name" Charlie remarked  
"For a beautiful woman" Elliot commented which almost made the boys sit up and spit out their drinks. Elliot looked at the pair and realised what he thought he'd been thinking, he'd actually said out loud.  
"Excuse me? Did I hear that right?" Charlie remarked, almost spitting out his drink, he couldn't believe the words that had just come out of Elliot's mouth. It had been a while since he'd made remarks like that on a woman's beauty, even when they had tried to get him to notice other women after Kathy left.  
"Did I say that out loud?" Elliot asked, sitting up straight as his friends were nodding. He had hoped he was imagining this right now and he'd not actually made a remark about Olivia's beauty with his friends around as he didn't need a third degree about this from them. Sadly, he wasn't imagining and Elliot wanted to disappear now, he was never going to hear the end of this.  
"She is a very beautiful woman and has helped me out a lot" Elliot commented again.  
"Sounds like someone has a crush to me"  
"What? No"  
"Man, when was the last time you noticed a woman like this? Like _properly _noticed a woman" Finn remarked and Elliot knew he'd been caught out. Maybe he did have a slight crush on Olivia or maybe it was that he was just noticing things from a different perspective with this extra time they were spending together, he was never going to admit it either way.

* * *

Elizabeth was the first out of the car and heading inside, quickly followed by Richard with Olivia bringing up the rear. They were supposed to have their swimming lessons in the private pool but it had moved last minute to a public location due to requirements of the teacher and thus they had just returned after the lesson. All Olivia wanted to do was get the kids inside, showered and having a snack before getting their homework done so they could relax into the evening. Olivia had arranged to have Lucy bring Chloe over in about an hour once she'd been picked up from day care, as Olivia had confirmed with Elliot this was fine. Olivia was glad to be able to spend more time with her little girl whilst also watching over Elizabeth and Richard. She felt like she'd hardly seen Chloe this week with all the commitments at school and with the Stabler twins. Olivia also intended to see if Elliot had all the supplies to bake cookies as both of Elizabeth and Richard said they wanted to learn how to bake cookies, but they didn't have anyone to teach them as Elliot didn't know how and Chef didn't like them in the kitchen with him. Olivia felt rather confident that she could change that. However, everything changed the minute they stepped inside the hotel lobby, as they saw the face of someone whom they never expected to see again.

"Dani! You're here!" Richard called as Olivia watched Richard push past his sister and run over to where their previous nanny was standing. There was something about the way she was looking at the group just now that told Olivia this wasn't going to go well.  
"Hey Buddy! I've missed you so much!" Dani greeted as she embraced the little boy in a tight bear hug. Elizabeth froze with terror as Dani looked at her.  
"What? You not going to come and say hi? You always were a selfish spoiled brat with no manners" Dani remarked but Olivia knew she had to step in.  
"Dani, what a surprise" Olivia greeted as she stepped up towards Elizabeth and held her hand out for the little girl. Elizabeth instantly grabbed it and then tried to hide herself in Olivia's side. Olivia knew the little girl was very uncomfortable at the moment.  
"Miss Benson, what are you doing here?" Dani asked  
"Miss Benson has been looking after us for daddy whilst you were gone" Richard quickly explained, wanting to bring the other woman up to speed quickly.  
"Oh, how nice of her. But she can go now, I'm here and everything can go back to the way it was" Dani remarked, smiling over at Olivia but Elizabeth clutched harder at Olivia. Olivia knew the little girl had lost almost complete use of her voice from terror. Olivia could tell now that Dani had clearly had more of a negative impact on Elizabeth than she'd originally thought or that anyone knew about.

"I'm not going anywhere, Dickie come on we've got to get upstairs" Olivia tried to coax the young boy away from Dani, not really sure how this situation was going to continue to play out but wanting to keep the twins safe. Something was really wrong with Dani right now and Olivia really wasn't prepared to keep the kids close to her to find out what.  
"But Dani?" Richard tried to refuse, he was very attached to their previous nanny.  
"Don't worry little man, you can stay here with me...she can't take you from me. Your daddy is going to be perfectly happy for me to look after both of you now I'm back and I bet he's going to tell this teacher of yours to get out of here...I even think he'll take Elizabeth out of her class as I've heard some horrible things about her" Dani remarked and Olivia just raised an eyebrow as watched Dani start to hold the boy slightly closer. There were several aspects of this current situation that she could tell weren't going to end well if they continued. Olivia looked around and could see a small group of people forming in the lobby as well, she wasn't going to make a mistake here, she was going to have to be careful with how she went about things now.

"Miss Benson, how are we this afternoon?" Parker asked as he made his way over to the group. Parker was one of the receptionists that worked the front counter in the lobby and he had become quite familiar with Olivia over the past few days from all the coming and going. He was clearly coming over to try and see what the commotion was.  
"I'm alright thank you Parker, we were just on our return upstairs. Can you let Mr Stabler know that we've returned please?" Olivia asked calming, she was trying to let Parker know to contact Elliot but not give it away in case that made Dani react dangerously or something.  
"Certainly Ma'am, but may I ask why?" Parker enquired, clearly wanting more of an explaination that Olivia would have liked.  
"He requested that he would like to know when we were home as our swimming lesson location changed" Olivia said, though she was sending a completely different message with her eyes but Parker wasn't responding.  
"Yes Parker, be a dear and call Mr Stabler. Let me know that Dani is back and that he can dismiss Miss Benson as her services are no longer required. I have everything under control and Elliot trusts me so he'll be more than happy to have me back" Dani interrupted the pair.  
"Ma'am?" Parker asked Olivia for further clarification that this is what she wanted.  
"That will be all, thank you parker" Olivia smiled as she dismissed the young man and looked down at Elizabeth who was holding her tight.

"Don't go, don't go, don't go" Elizabeth cried into Olivia but Olivia just bent down to the little girls height.  
"Honey, I'm not going anywhere and I promise I won't let her touch you. But I really need you to be a big girl for me now and head upstairs with Dicke to Bertie. Let her know what is going on and I'll be right behind you in a few minutes. Daddy is going to be home soon too" Olivia tried to comfort the little girl.  
"But, no! I don't want to leave you...No, no no" Elizabeth cried  
"Lizzie, sweetheart you can do this for me. I promise you it will all be fine"  
"You know you shouldn't make promises that you won't keep to such an impressionable little girl" Dani interrupted, drawing attention back to her but Olivia just glared over at her. She didn't know what game this woman was playing but she couldn't take her focus off Elizabeth right now.  
"Lizzie, your precious teacher is lying to you and you don't need that. Come over here and we'll get rid of such a horrid woman" Dani remarked but Elizabeth just clung to Olivia tighter. Dani was not taking the girl's refusal well, Olivia could see that from her body language.

* * *

Elliot was sitting in his office, gazing out the window and lost in his thoughts when he heard someone calling his name.  
"Mr Stabler...Mr Stabler, are you there?" Ashley called through the door, dragging Elliot back to reality from his thoughts.  
"Yes Ashley, come in" Elliot answered.  
"Sir, I've got Parker from the hotel on the line, he says he needs to talk to you" Ashley explained as she stood in the doorway.  
"Transfer him through please, thank you" Elliot said as he picked up the handset to his desk phone. He knew that Parker would only call directly if something was wrong and the fact he was calling now, meant that there was something going on at the hotel. Elliot waited a couple of minutes as Parker was patched through to him before speaking again.  
"Parker? What's wrong?"  
"Sir, Miss Benson asked me to call you and tell you they were home as you had asked them to when the swimming location changed. But there is another lady here too, she's got a hold of Richard sir and is saying you don't need to worry and Dani is back to look after the kids and you can dismiss Miss Benson" Parker tried to explain and Elliot could hear the commotion in the background. _There is no way that is happening _Elliot thought to himself, he was not going to dismiss Olivia like that. He was not going to dismiss someone who cared for his kids more than she cared for herself. Olivia gave her everything to help him out where she could and he was not going to dismiss her for someone who couldn't even bother to show up to a meeting or let him know that she wouldn't be there. Elliot knew that he had to get to the hotel, he had to know what was going on and he had to get Dani away from his kids. _I should have known that she was never going to go easily _Elliot thought as he told Parker he would be there soon and to let Miss Benson know he was on his way.

_**A/N: Uh Oh...**_


	16. Confrontation

**_A/N: So I thought this chapter had gone up days ago and was wondering what was going on as I'd not received any comments or messages about it...Well turns out it hadn't. So i apologise about that but as i said, i thought it was already posted. I also decided recently to change the direction of this story slightly as i was re-reading every chapter and thought it was dragging a little, which i can see some of you agreed with too (so thanks for your reviews. So i've been busy re-writing the next few chapters and editing them in a hope to get some quicker updates. But without further ado, please enjoy this chapter and let me know what you thought by leaving a review!  
Until Next Time ;)_**

**Chapter 16 - Confrontation**

Olivia wasn't sure what was going to happen next, but she had Dani holding Richard somewhat hostage, Elizabeth clinging to her in tears and Richard looking at her across the gap from where Dani was holding him, unsure exactly what was going on anymore. Parker had told her that Mr Stabler was on his way and Dani had taken that communication as a sign that he was coming to stick up for her rather than Olivia but Olivia knew it differently. However, it was when Dani had made a grab for Elizabeth to get her away from Olivia, that Olivia made a move to place the girl behind her. Elizabeth was more worked up over this and absolutely terrified now. It was not surprising when she was 7 years old and a crazed grown woman who had affected her previously, was now making a grab for her in a wild rage.

"You can't take the kids from me you lying bitch! First you steal my job, you steal my man and now you steal the kids too? What do you have against me?" Dani yelled.  
"I didn't steal anything" Olivia retaliated, remaining calm for the sake of the children that were around and the other hotel patrons.  
"Bitch, you did! Elliot wouldn't have suspected that anything was wrong with his children or caused any kind of issues with my job till you decided to stick your foot in everything. You are clearly a selfish bitch who decided that you wanted to be the one for him. You think that seducing him and getting with him is going to solve all your old ass problems…You're so lonely in your pathetic little life that you have to try and seduce a man to feel right, a man who would never look at you twice otherwise?! That's so pathetic" Dani remarked, verbally attacking Olivia however she could. Richard was starting to get uncomfortable with Dani's hold on him though and Olivia could read his distress in his body language like a book. She could also tell that Richard was noticing his sisters distress at Olivia's side and wanting to help.  
"Watch your language! There are kids around! You really shouldn't use that kind of language around them" Olivai retorted. She knew that it had to be close to the time that Lucy would be getting here with Chloe and she really wanted to end this situation before that happened.

"Dani, can you let go of me?" Richard asked, trying to be heard over all the commotion but his voice sounded very weak.  
"No, she can't have you! You're mine! You love me and I want you more than anyone else ever will, I won't let this bitch have you too" Dani replied  
"HEY!" Olivia interrupted  
"Please Dani, you're scaring Lizzie and you're hurting me" Richard started to cry but Dani just seemed to cling to him tighter.  
"NO! She's brainwashed you against me now, just like your brat sister. WE were best friends before that bitch stepped in and you can't leave me! You're meant to be mine" Dan replied but Richard was scared at this reaction. He had only come over to Dani to briefly give her a hug but now he wanted to get out. Olivia signalled to Parker to come to her, praying he would follow her instructions and that Lizzie would to or what she planned to do next wouldn't work.  
"Lizzie, sweetheart. Can you go and stand near Parker for me? I need to help Dickie and I can't do that whilst holding on to you too. I know Parker won't let anyone come near you ok? Daddy's going to be here really soon and I know you're going to be ok" Olivia to coax Elizabeth as Parker walked over. Elizabeth was hesitant to let Olivia go but she managed to coax Elizabeth over to Parker, whom she held on to just as tightly.

"DON'T COME ANY CLOSER BITCH!" Dani yelled as Olivia turned back towards her.  
"Dani, you are hurting Richard. I know that you love him and I know he's like a son to you. But I can tell you, you are hurting him right now. It's not him that you are angry at either, it's me. So, how about you let him go and we can talk" Olivia asked, trying to Dani to release the young boy from her grasp.  
"I don't want to talk to a slut like you, you get everything you could ever want in your life by opening those legs and letting men have it" Dani yelled, threatening Olivia as she continued to approach. Olivia knew that she just had to get Richard away from her. But the closer she got, the further Dani backed away._ Like Water to a duck's back, just let it go _Olivia mentally tried to encourage herself to ignore the rude things that Dani was currently saying. None of which was true at this stage, but still had hurtful intentions.  
"Dani, you are really hurting Richard now and making him upset. I know this isn't what you want. Can you just let him go? Let Dickie go and then you and I can talk. If you let Dickie go now, I will help you convince Mr Stabler to give you the job back?" Olivia tried to coax the woman. At this stage she really wasn't sure what was going to work but she was prepared to try everything she could.

"Why would you help me?" Dani asked, suddenly interested at the prospects Olivia was offering.  
"You are clearly an important person to Dickie, he really loves you but you need to let him go for me to be able to help you. I know the twins would like to see you back looking after them but we can't do that when you're like this" Olivia explained, she knew she was wearing Dani down. But it was this intimidation that Dani was feeling, that made her retaliate rather than agree.

"You know, I read up on you. I looked you up the minute I met you and spoke to different people. You have really got quite the past" Dani remarked, Olivia was close enough now that she had to focus on Richard and getting him free.  
"Dickie, can you see Parker? When you get a chance, I want you to run to him. He'll keep you safe ok?" Olivia asked, knowing that Dani had to be getting worked up to the point where she will retaliate physically soon and she needed to get this precious little boy out of the way before that happened. She had seen this type of behaviour before and if Dani was after her then Richard would be safe.  
"Abusive husband, raped him to get your ugly kid but yet you still couldn't get that man to stay. You're a lying bitch and won't actually help me at all. You just want this family, my family all to yourself, you're determined to try and get a new man to make you feel whole. WELL GUESS WHAT, YOU CAN'T HAVE HIM" Dani remarked. Olivia couldn't' believe all the personal cards that Dani was playing but she was determined to stay calm and in control for the sake of the twins.  
"You can't have Elliot or the twins, they're mine, they love me and I will make Elliot way happier than you ever could. A man like him doesn't deserve a slut and a waste of space like you…You are going to be forever alone because there isn't a man on the earth who could love you" Dani continued to attack. Olivia knew this was her moment, she lunged towards Dani, trying to release her hold on Richard and sure enough her movement worked. Dani slapped Olivia wide across the face but in her attack, she let go of Richard and the little boy took off towards Parker. Olivia didn't have to say a single word, he'd know what he needed to do.

"How's that feel huh now Miss Benson? I bet this turns you on" Dani taunted.  
"Parker, take the twins upstairs…NOW" Olivia called as she turned her focus briefly from Dani to make sure the kids got out of here. Olivia would never be violent but she wasn't just going to stand by and 'take' anymore of this or let Dani get anywhere near the twins.  
"NO!...No, you can't take them from me!" Dani lunged towards the ids but Olivia stood in the way and Dani just lunged at her, knocking them both to the ground. No one could say what sparked this next outrage but when they hit the floor, Dani just let loose. There was a fist to the eye, a knock to the ribs and grabbing of hair, the majority being inflicted on Olivia but she stayed strong. She could take it but she wasn't going to let this psycho win.

* * *

"YOU STEP AWAY FROM HER RIGHT NOW" A voice echoed throughout the lobby, people turned to see the noise and spotted Elliot walking into the lobby. However Dani was too quick for anyone and the minute she spotted Elliot, she was off Olivia and flinging herself at Elliot.  
"Oh my god, Elliot! Thank god you're here, this psycho bitch was out of control, you really shouldn't let her near your children again. I had to step in just to save them" Dani remarked as Elliot just pushed her away from him. Elliot wasn't listening to Dani as he knew that her story was not the true case, his focus was on Olivia. He watched without saying a word, whilst Dani rambled on, as a few reception staff helped Olivia to get up and lean against the pole. They seemed to fuss over and assess her condition, whether she was bleeding and he was sure he heard someone say to call an ambulance. Elliot wasn't concerned about Dani in the slightest, he needed to see that Olivia was ok and he needed to find his kids. He hoped they weren't hurt by all of this. Elliot had called the police on the way over to the hotel and a few armed officers had followed him into the building. They were now in the process of escorting Dani out of the building as she screamed and cried out for him. Elliot's priority was Olivia.

Elliot rushed over to where one of the receptionists was holding up an icepack to Olivia's head.  
"Olivia…Olivia, are you ok?" Elliot asked, concern thick in his voice.  
"Go…upstairs…I'm fine…But your kids need you" Olivia wheezed out, she was more focused on getting Elliot to his likely terrified children upstairs than anything to do with herself right now.  
"Look after her…please" Elliot ordered and rushed off towards his private elevator, hoping to get to his children as fast as possible.

* * *

"Daddy!" Elizabeth and Richard shouted as they ran over to him once he was out of the elevator. He was so relieved to see that they were ok, he'd been terrified when he saw Olivia in the lobby that something had happened to them.  
"Daddy it was so scary, Dani had me and wouldn't let me go…I thought she was going to keep me" Richard started to cry as Elliot just soothed the little boy.  
"Where's Miss Benson?" Elizabeth asked as she tried to look around her father's arms.  
"Does Dani have Miss Benson now? Daddy we need to go get her" Richard stated, suddenly showing great concern that Olivia hadn't come up with Elliot.  
"Hold up, Hold Up, Hold Up you two…Miss Benson is fine, she's just taking a bit of time to herself, she wanted me to get to you two and know you were ok" Elliot explained, trying to ease the worry of his kids as they moved over towards the couch again and Parker dismissed himself now that Elliot was back.

"Daddy, Miss Benson saved me…I need to see her too" Richard explained but Elliot would not let him go downstairs right now. He only hoped that Olivia would come up here before she left when all was said and done. He needed to thank her and he needed to know properly that she was alright. He had been just as terrified that she was hurt as he'd ben that his kids were and then it turned out that Olivia did get hurt. It was all his fault, he never should have left the hotel today, he should have gone to lunch and come back here to work, at least he would have been here then.  
"Daddy, Dani said a lot of bad words to Miss Benson…But Miss Benson isn't those bad words is she?"  
"I don't know what she said honey as I couldn't get here in time but i'm sure none of them were true" Elliot replied, trying to soothe all the thoughts going through not only his kids heads but his too.

"Dani was really angry, I don't want to see Dani again daddy" Richard remarked, today had clearly shaken his whole view of things.  
"Don't worry, we wont see her again"  
"Can we keep seeing Miss Benson though daddy? Please? Can she be our new nanny forever?" Elizabeth asked, it was like Olivia was the little girls new favourite person in the whole world. Before Elliot could respond to the little girls question, the elevator dinged and one of the police officers from earlier walked out.  
"Mr Stabler?"  
"yes? What can I do for you?" Elliot greeted, looking up from his kids  
"We just wanted to let you know we've escorted Miss Benson home and the other lady from the attack is in our custody. We will await your request in how you want to proceed"  
"Thank you" Elliot dismissed the officer again.

"No No No, Miss Benson can't go home Daddy…She has to stay here, what if Dani gets her again? Dani was _really _angry at her and Miss Benson can' go home" Richard started to protest, almost jumping off the couch to go towards the elevator  
"Dickie, Dani isn't going to get anywhere near Miss Benson but I can't make Miss Benson stay here. Look I might try and talk to her later but for now, I think its time for dinner and a movie?" Elliot suggested as he stood up from the couch, taking both of the twins with him. He hated the thought that Olivia felt she would need to go home straight after everything today and not talking with them. He wanted to thank her properly for what she did and eh wanted to make sure that she was really alright. However, as Olivia had already left, that would simply have to wait and his focus was his kids right now.

* * *

Olivia was on the couch with Chloe, holding the little girl close as she slept and just embracing this sweet moment. So much had happened today, she didn't even know where to begin. The words that were said to her by Dani were so biter and hateful, the last time she'd heard those words were out of Brian's mouth or from his family when Brian had been sentenced to prison. That had brought up so much for her in the aftermath of the attack that there was no way that Olivia could really face anyone after that. Thankfully she had also been able to call Lucy before she arrived at the hotel, to cancel the meet up instead asking for her daughter to be taken home. Olivia had then asked for the same request for herself, to another police officer as she couldn't handle talking with anyone else today.

Olivia just wanted to be with her daughter, Chloe and she just wanted to be at home. Her face stung, though it was unlikely anything was actually broken. Olivia knew from the pain she was in with her eye, it was going to require her likely to miss work for the rest of the week, there was simply no way that it would be comfortable enough to put make up over it and there was no amount of make up that could hide the pain she was in or how bad her eye was going to look with all the swelling and bruising that was still forming. She'd almost forgotten what kind of pain these injuries felt like, but not quite.

Olivia hoped the twins were alright, she had meant to go up to their apartment and check on them before she left but when she was finally free to leave from the police officers, all she wanted was to go home. Olivia had to go down to the precinct tomorrow most likely to go over her statement and see any possible more evidence that had been collected. It was also likely that as her bruising and swelling would have formed around her eye and the other injuries, the officers would want to capture that. The officers had taken pictures today to add to the case but they would likely need more tomorrow as Olivia already knew how bad her eye was going to look compared to now. What Olivia really wanted though was just to get it all over and done with, to be able to move forward again. But she definitely didn't think that she would be venturing into the public places or at school again till likely early next week. She wouldn't put anyone through that horror.


	17. Aftermath

**Chapter 17: Aftermath**

The night after the attack had to be the worst night for everyone in terms of sleeping. Elliot was sure that he'd only really managed to get an hour or maybe 2 of sleep here and there across the whole night, with how many times the twins were up and down. Elizabeth was the worst and had woken up several times across the night, screaming and in absolute tears from whatever terrors she'd dreamt. Richard had been better in a way but he had still been distraught in his sleep numerous times across the night when Elliot had checked on him. If the terrors were waking his 7 year olds up or affecting their sleep then Elliot hated to think how different and likely worse, Olivia was coping with all. He wondered if she was having the same terrors and was up and down all night. He wanted to message her but chose against it at the thought of waking her up if she was actually still asleep. Elliot had meant to call Olivia and check in on her after the twins had first gone to bed but decided against doing so as it had gotten quite late. But Elliot made a mental note to try and call her the following morning to check in with her. Of course, the night had ended with Elizabeth sleeping in his bed with him, as she had wet hers and the only way she managed to sleep was in his bed. The little girl was really going through all kinds of emotions right now after Dani.

As Elliot sat, drinking his coffee and looking out as the sun rose over the New York skyline, he had made the decision to keep the twins home from school for the rest of the week. After the night they had, with the limited sleep, there really was no way that the twins would be comfortably making it to school or even focusing whilst there and there was no way that Elliot would get to work. Home commitments sometimes meant that sacrifices with work had to be made, Elliot was just lucky that he was running his own successful business and could take the time where needed. He called Ashley first, to let her know that he wouldn't be in today but would be available on the phone if it was an emergency. He was going to focus on helping his kids through all of this until they were better. Then of course there was the question of whether or not to seriously pursue charges against Dani. Elliot felt strongly about doing this and he believed that with everything Dani had done to his children and Olivia that she deserved to face the consequences of her actions. He was so strongly focused on this that he was going to head down to the police precinct later today to make sure everything was in order and he didn't have to complete any additional paperwork.

**Elliot: Hey, How are you this morning? You rushed off yesterday before I had the chance to properly check on you or thank you for protecting my kids. I'm going to keep them home today and likely tomorrow as we've had a really rough night and they aren't in the state to go to school. I hope you're ok though and please let me know if there is **_**anything **_**that I can do for you **Elliot texted Olivia. He wasn't sure what her plans were today, whether or not she would be at school either but he really wanted to let her know as soon as possible that the twins definitely wouldn't be there. Part of him hoped that Olivia wasn't there either though, after yesterday she deserved to take this time for herself.

**Olivia: Good Morning! I'm sorry that I dashed off so quickly yesterday but I really just needed to get home to my daughter. Don't worry though, I'm totally fine. I'm not going to be at school either till likely early next week at this stage but I'll pass on the message about your kids being absent. I really hope they are ok? There were some things said yesterday they heard but hopefully won't understand…Just try and be there for them today :) **Olivia quickly replied to Elliot's message he had to admit he felt relieved that Olivia was taking time off for herself. After all the trauma yesterday, she needed to take a break and he was glad she had realised that too. Elliot still had a strong urge to see her today though and he knew that he had one little girl who would also be desperate to see Olivia too.  
**Elliot: Well, if you're not at school today, can we meet up somewhere? I have a little girl who is simply desperate to see you and it might help with how she's feeling with everything that happened? **Elliot asked. He hoped that Olivia would agree to this meet up but honestly wasn't sure what she was going to be doing.

* * *

Olivia was feeling conflicted as to what she should respond. On one hand she wanted to meet up with him and the twins to see that they were all alright. But on the other hand, she had taken a really good look in the mirror this morning and sure enough, her left eye was still very swollen and very dark with the bruising. It was simply too painful to put any makeup over it and she couldn't think of being seen like this. It would be at least a couple of days before all of this went down and Olivia was sure if the twins saw her now, they would have nightmares. Not to mention that she absolutely hated the thought of Elliot seeing her right now like this. Olivia didn't think she had a suitable excuse to use when she declined Elliot's offer. She just really didn't want to hurt his or the twins feelings in anyway. But she just wasn't sure that going out like this other than when she had to, was really a good idea.

Olivia had spoken with both her dad and Alex on the phone earlier this morning, in regard to the attack she had been through yesterday. Apparently, there was now a video doing the rounds online of what was going on and both had seen it numerous times. Olivia was just glad there was a video out there that showed exactly what Dani did, as they could use it as evidence if she needed to take Dani to court. However. she still felt a little on guard about who could potentially see the video and any repercussions which might occur because of it. Don had spoken a length with Olivia about the attack and made specific attempts to ensure that she was really alright, he'd even offered to come to New York and spend time with her but Olivia didn't want to take her dad away from his farm. It was a challenge to find people to mind the farm when Don did have to go away and the work he did there was really helping the community. Don had retired from the successful business career and sold his business when he was ready to retire but then with the money he had from the sale, he bought the farm. It was just outside of town and had been where Olivia had spent the most time when she was growing up. The farm had now turned into a way for her father to help the local community and the disadvantaged youths of the area by giving them solid work to keep on the straight and narrow path. It was honestly working wonders and Olivia was really proud of Don for everything that he was doing. Not to mention that she and Chloe really loved going to spend time at the farm.

Alex on the other hand, had already booked a flight out to New York before she'd even called Olivia. Alex was not leaving any chance for Olivia to refuse her offer to come out, she knew that Olivia needed her. Alex would be in New York first thing tomorrow morning and Olivia was really excited to see her best friend again as it had been such a long time. The incident with Dani and the things that were said had brought up some really challenging stuff for Olivia. They were things from Olivia's past that no one knew apart from her close friends as they'd been through it all with her. These were things weren't really things that she felt comfortable telling anyone else yet and most importantly she wouldn't tell Elliot. She couldn't let Elliot know about her past, it wasn't something she needed anyone else knowing. So, in a way, Olivia was glad that Alex was coming to visit as Alex had been there through everything with Brian and Olivia could talk with Alex about the attack in specific detail. They could talk about it in a way that Olivia didn't feel like she could with anyone else here in New York.

**Olivia: I'm not sure whether I have time. I have several commitments today and my best friend is coming into town tomorrow so I have to get ready for her. Please let Elizabeth know that I'm perfectly fine but if it's not too late when I'm free later, I'll try call and speak with her :) **Olivia decided to reply, finally working out the way to politely let Elliot down. She decided that the best way to do it would be to be truthful and explain what she had to do today. Olivia really wasn't sure now she thought about it whether she would have time to meet up with Elliot and the twins in addition to getting everything ready for Alex's stay. Olivia was going to move Chloe's bed into her room whilst Alex was here and then Alex was going to take the spare bed in Chloe's room that Olivia would finish setting up later. Olivia also had to go down to the precinct today to finalise her statement and check that the charges were going to be processed alright for Dani's attack. Dani had been abusive, and she deserved to get the consequences for her actions. Olivia wasn't just going to stand by and let her think this was ok when it really wasn't. But she did mean what she had said to Elliot, she would try and call them later today to check in on everything, if it didn't get too late.

* * *

There were very few times Elliot had ever had to step foot in a police station, he normally didn't have any particular reason to step inside. But he kept both Elizabeth and Dickie close by as he did so as he knew there were all kinds of people in this place. Not to mention after everything that had happened yesterday with the attack, the police would want to talk to his kids more than him, to get their side of things. Elliot wouldn't be leaving them whilst they did so, as they were minors and he knew they wouldn't be particularly comfortable without him close by. There was a particularly stale smell in the air as he stepped inside the precinct and felt Elizabeth tighten her grip on his hand as they did. He stepped to the front desk and advised the desk sergeant who they were here to see and what about it.

As the trio made their way to the side to wait for the officer, Elliot spotted a familiar woman walking out from behind the desk with another officer. He knew he would recognise that brown hair and figure of the person anyway, he just never expected that they would be here at the police station at the same time. It was Olivia and Elliot was so glad to see that she was here.  
"Olivia" Elliot called out and the woman just turned towards him, her face showing her surprise to see him. Elliot couldn't help but cringe a little at the dark bruise across her cheek and eye. He could tell there was some serious swelling there and how much pain she must be in right now. Elliot felt guilty that this had happened when she was doing him favour and had been at his hotel.  
"Miss Benson!" Elizabeth called out and broke free from her father to run towards the other woman who caught the little girl and hugged her close.  
"What happened to your eye?" Elizabeth asked, in the typical young child type of method for just asking what they were thinking. Olivia thanked the officer she had walked out with and dismissed him before turning her attention to Elizabeth.  
"It's nothing, just a little bit of swelling and a bruise. Now how are you sweetheart?" Olivia asked, playing down how much pain she was in and her embarrassment over being seen out when her eye looked so horrendous.  
"You didn't come and say bye after daddy came up yesterday? I didn't see you" Elizabeth stated, clearly concerned for the welfare of the woman.  
"I'm sorry sweetheart, I just really had to go and see my daughter and make sure that she was ok. I knew that with your daddy there you would be ok, he could keep you extra safe and I really think he's doing a good job at that" Olivia smiled over at Elliot, knowing that he was not going to let anything else happen to them if he could help it. She knew that yesterday had been a really scary experience for him.

"What are you doing here?" Richard asked, not leaving his fathers side but wanting to talk with Olivia as much as his sister.  
"I had to come and talk to the police officers about yesterday, as I had some more information that they really needed. But please excuse me as I need to get going now" Olivia replied, starting to look in the direction of the exit but unsure how she would get away with Elizabeth on her hip like this.  
"Where are you going?" Elizabeth asked,  
"I have to go home and finish cleaning my house. I have a friend coming to see me tomorrow and I have to finish getting her room ready for her" Olivia explained.  
"We can help you! Bertie showed us all about cleaning" Elizabeth tried to suggest which Olivia found a very sweet offer but wasn't going to take her up on it.  
"Honey, that's really sweet and thank you for offering but I think you and your daddy have a really important thing to do here"  
"Hey guys, why don't you go and sit on those chairs for me? I just need a minute to talk with Miss Benson and then we have to go talk to the nice police man" Elliot spoke up for the first time.  
"No!" Elizabeth protested whilst hugging Olivia a little bit tighter, she really didn't want to let the woman go.  
"Lizzie, come on sweetheart" Elliot tried to encourage the little girl just to let go and follow what he had asked.  
"Nooo, I don't want Miss Benson to go!" Elizabeth tried to protest.  
"Honey, your daddy and I will stay right here and I promise I'll make sure to say goodbye before I leave. It'll be ok" Olivia tried to soothe the little girl's concerns. It was clear from the discussion they had already had that the events of yesterday really shook Elizabeth up. Olivia walked over to the seats and sat next to Elizabeth for a moment before she was able to get up and walk back to Elliot without Elizabeth attached to her hip. The little girl could see her the entire time.

_**A/N: Thoughts? I wanted to write a chapter that kind of shows the continued aftermath to what had happened...I've just written the sweetest chapter for a few chapters time and i must say, everything here is leading up to some rather big moments. I hope you enjoyed this chapter though and i'm so glad to see so many of you loving this story! Let me know what you thought by leaving a review! Believe me when i say, the reviews help me stay motivated to write at times where i may be lacking motivation or inspiration.  
**__**Until Next Time ;)**_


	18. Alex

**_A/N: Hello my lovely readers, here is a brand new chapter for you all to enjoy. In this chapter there is discussion between our favourite pair, a new arrival and well...a bit of a significant move forward at the end. Everything is heading in the right direction for our favourite duo but...that is all i'm going to say on that. Please let me know what you thought by leaving me a review! I love to read them and I'm so glad so many of you are so interested and loving this story as i'm honestly loving writing it all. Updates may be slower during the week, as i'm currently working almost full time and preparing to move overseas at the end of the week but i plan to try and get you an update every weekend and i'm going to try my hardest for during the week too. I quite often find myself writing or editing upcoming chapters during my lunch breaks at work ;) So please, just be patient with me as i try manage everything. However leaving me a review at the end of the chapter with your thoughts would really help me out, so please feel free to do so. Until Next Time ;)_**

* * *

**Chapter 18: Alex**

Olivia stood with Elliot, just to the side of the entrance of the police precinct, talking. Olivia knew she really had to leave soon as her face was sore, so she needed to take her make-up off and finish getting her place ready for Alex tomorrow. But Elliot seemed really desperate to talk with her so she was hardly going to brush him off. She wouldn't be that rude and she did want to hear what he wanted to tell her.  
"So, I just want to say that I'm so sorry with everything that happened yesterday" Elliot started.  
"Elliot, it wasn't your fault. You have nothing to apologise for" Olivia tried to comfort him.  
"But you were looking after my children and attacked by my previous nanny Dani" Elliot continued to explain but Olivia could read from his body language that he was feeling guilty over this all which he didn't need to. She didn't blame him for anything that had happened, it would have happened likely either way with how Dani was, Dani was the one to blame in all of this, not Elliot.

"Elliot, I'm fine" Olivia replied as she reached out and placed her hand on his arm lightly. She looked him straight in the eyes, trying to tell him that she was fine, and they would be fine.  
"No you're not. That eye looks really painful for you, and I hate the thought you might be any more pain from damage she's done. I hate that this is all my fault as she had acted out against me and I promise you now that I'm going to make sure she pays for what she has done" Elliot stated as he placed a hand on top of Olivia's which was on his arm, giving it a soft squeeze. Olivia was conflicted on how to respond, the pain she had from yesterday was really nothing compared to things that had happened in the past. But she didn't want to bring all of that up to Elliot as it wasn't really things that he needed to know.

"It's really not that painful, it looks worse than it actually is. I have already given everything to the police about what happened and I know that you'll follow up on your end in regards to what needs to be done still. Please don't beat yourself up over it as none of this is your fault and I don't blame you at all. I blame Dani and I can't stand to even look at her right now" Olivia explained, she really didn't blame Elliot at all and honestly she really wished that he would stop beating himself up over it all, she didn't need to do any of that.  
"Are you really sure we can't take you out to lunch or coffee or something?" Elliot didn't want Olivia to leave just yet, he wanted to spend more time with her.  
"No, thank you though. Believe me, I have a million things to do before my friend gets here tomorrow. Look after those two and I know you'll all be fine"  
"Who is going to look after you though? If you're so focused on looking after others?"  
"My friend is coming to New York to check in with me. But don't worry I'll be fine. If you need me though, you have my number and I'm only a phone call away" Olivia said giving Elliot's arm one more soft squeeze in support and then started to pull away to leave. But Elliot wasn't finished with her just yet, he pulled her closer to him by the arm again and hugged her close. He had just wanted to give her something to show he cared about her and a hug seemed the least confrontational at the moment. Olivia was shocked initially but the hug felt really nice and she really liked this feeling of being in Elliot's arms and she relaxed into the hug at that moment. It only asked a couple of seconds and they pulled away again shortly after so they could head to the twins so Olivia could say goodbye like she promised Elizabeth she would.

* * *

Olivia had to admit she had been rather touched by Elliot's concern about her and the way that he was so determined to make things right with her. It was almost like he wanted to make sure that she didn't think any less of him, but Olivia couldn't see how that would even be possible. Elliot had to be one of the best men that Olivia had ever known and she admired the way that he cared so much, especially about her. When he hugged her, Olivia honestly felit this sense of a calming wash right over her in a way that she'd never felt before. It was almost like the feeling of him holding her like this was doing something for her in terms of healing or relieving any added anxiety she was feeling. The minute they pulled apart, Olivia wanted him to pull her in again but he didn't and Olivia didn't feel right pulling him in, and felt wrong for wishing that he would. Olivia hadn't stopped thinking about the feeling of being held by Elliot for the entire taxi ride home from the precinct and most of last night. These thoughts had her questioning whether she was starting to develop something more than just friendly feelings towards Elliot, and something more than she originally thought was possible.

She never would have thought that these feelings she was having would eventuate into something more than friends, something that she would spend time dreaming about at night. But that was exactly what had happened, she had dreamt about Elliot last night and she'd dreamt that he didn't just hug her yesterday but kissed her too. Her thoughts about him like that were part of the reason that she'd been trying to avoid him yesterday, as it was only the night before that which Elliot had been in her dreams with his worried face when he arrived at the hotel with her hurt. Olivia wanted to think that there was something going on between them but she didn't want to admit to having those feelings. So, she simply decided that she would just try and avoid Elliot all together or not think about him more than she had to. Thankfully with Alex coming into town and Chloe to take up her time, that should be relatively easy.

Olivia stood, holding Chloe on her hip, at the arrival gate to the plane which had recently arrived. They were waiting to see Alex walk out of the entrance doors off the plane. Chloe was fascinated by every single person who was walking up the arrival walkway, she was quite the people watcher and she was excited to see her aunt. Alex and Chloe weren't siblings but due to being best friends, Alex had always been referred to as 'aunty alex'. Olivia was pointing out different things to the little girl as they stood there. Olivia had taken Chloe on the plane when she was about 6 months old, when they moved to New York and then they went on a plane again last Christmas to go back home and visit Olivia's father and everyone for Christmas. But Olivia knew that the next time she had to take Chloe on a plane, Chloe was going to be more of a handful, simply by how interested in everything about this airport and the planes, she currently is. However Olivia also knew that her little girl was going to love the whole experience of flying on a plane when that time came again.

"Al!" Chloe shrieked as Olivia looked where the little girl was pointing, sure enough her best friend was just walking up the walkway and towards where they were standing.  
"Go get her!" Olivia said as she placed Chloe on the ground and watched her run, over to Alex, who had bent down to catch her in time before the little girl tripped. Chloe wasn't the most stable on her feet at this stage, she could walk though and was alright most of the time but she did have issues from time to time. Olivia smiled softly as she watched Alex and Chloe interact, she even managed to capture a picture of the warm welcoming that Chloe gave Alex. She would send that to Alex later as it was simply adorable.  
"She spotted you before anyone else did" Olivia remarked as she walked over to where Alex was standing holding Chloe, and hugged her as a greeting.  
"You found your aunty Alex didn't you, you found her and you got to her before mommy" Olivia smiled at her daughter before the trio headed out towards the direction of baggage claim. Olivia was so glad to see her friend and was really looking forward to spending time together in New York.

**Elliot: Just a quick message to say that I really hope you're starting to feel better and I hope your friend got here safely. I know you are going to have a lovely time with them and I hope they look after you **Elliot texted and Olivia had to admit, she was a little surprised to get the text from him but she appreciated it.  
**Olivia: Thanks! My friend just arrived actually and I can tell you that Chloe is so excited to have her 'Aunty Al' here with us **Olivia replied, attaching the image she had taken earlier of Alex and Chloe as Alex arrived.  
**Elliot: That is really cute! You picking her up now? How's the face feeling? **Elliot replied again almost instantly.

"Who are you talking to, that has you so engaged on your phone right now like that?" Alex remarked as they stood waiting for her bags to come through.  
"No one" Olivia denied.  
"Uh uh...Sure. I think your mommy might be keeping secrets from us Miss Chloe" Alex remarked as she continued to hold the little girl.  
"It's just a school matter, I have a teaching student right now and as I'm not there so she wanted to check in about a few things" Olivia lied, she could tell Alex did not believe her at all right now though. The look with the slight raised eyebrow was almost Olivia's signature look and Alex had learnt to use it well to her advantage. So Olivia knew what Alex was thinking right now.  
"Sure it is, I doubt you pay quite so much attention when it is really work stuff but if you really don't want to tell me who it is your talking with, I would push" Alex remarked and Olivia knew this wasn't entirely true. Alex was going to drop the subject for now but she wouldn't drop it entirely, there would be more discussion later.

**Olivia: Yeah, Chloe and I are at the airport with her, just waiting for her bags now. Apparently paying so much attention to the phone and talking with you like this has her suspicious though, and I blame you for it. The face is still sore but it's manageable. The actual swelling has gone down quite a lot and makeup is covering up whats left. How are the twins? **Olivia replied again, wanting to reply to Elliot's message but still not trying to be too distracted by it.  
**Elliot: Well, I simply wanted to make sure that you were ok. I don't think we are really being that suspicious. We can be if you want to be though ;) Glad to hear the face is getting better, a black eye isn't exactly the latest fashion trend, I for one like your normal face much better. The twins are good, Richard slept right through last night but Elizabeth was still up a few times **Elliot quickly replied as Olivia helped Alex to collect her bag from the luggage carousel and they headed in the direction back to the train station to head in the direction of home.

* * *

The news about the events in the hotel was really spreading like wildfire, there were already several videos circulating on the web about it and the hotel had to go into damage control methods to make sure that no serious reputation damage was done for the hotel. But just like the information had spread over the internet like wildfire with this age of technology and the fact everyone has a camera now, the information of the attack had reached his family as well as friends and Elliot had faced numerous calls from his siblings and everyone to check that he and his children were ok. The one he hadn't had a call or a message from just yet, but the one person he was expecting to hear from was his mother. He was waiting for the call where his mother would grill him about how he could put his kids in such a position like that. She would tell him that she expected better from him and that he should know to do all the background checks for anyone he hires to look after his children. But Elliot had done that and he'd never seen any of this coming, there were no signs of anything that Dani would do, she had simply flipped out and gone on a rampage. But deep-down Elliot knew that he really should have known better. Elliot was prepared for the impact from his mothers call though and knew it would come sooner rather than later. It was just a question as to when.

He had contacted Olivia simply because he'd been thinking about her this morning and he wanted to talk with her. But he wasn't entirely sure how to start the conversation which is why he'd started asking about her friend. Elliot really wanted to invite Olivia over for lunch or dinner tomorrow, he wanted to spend more time with her and found himself thinking either lunch or dinner would be the best option in terms of invitations that she might accept. Elliot planned to ask under the topic of simply saying thank you for everything that Olivia had done for his children and himself before the attack and to show how much he appreciated her. But really, his intentions with the lunch or dinner invitation was the fact he just wanted to spend time alone with her. Whilst they really wouldn't be completely alone if Olivia did agree to come over, as the twins would be here, it was the best thing he could really think of at this time and hoped she would agree. He had watched hi phone like a hawk after sending the last message to her, waiting for her response but it never came. He figured she must simply be busy but he was just going to have to take a chance and he had typed out the following message before hitting send.  
**Elliot: I know your probably busy with your friend and you can definitely say no. But would you want to come to dinner tomorrow night? The kids and I would really like to have you over to show our appreciation for everything you've done for us? If dinner won't work, what about lunch?**

* * *

**_A/N: Well, what is Olivia going to say to that?_**


	19. Acceptance

**Chapter 19: Acceptance**

"Who is Elliot?" Alex asked as they stood outside Olivia's apartment whilst Olivia dug around in her bag to find the apartment key. The question took Olivia completely by surprise as she really hadn't expected it at all.  
"Just a friend" Olivia dismissed, she was really not having any of this discussion with Alex about Elliot right now. That was a discussion for later tonight with plenty of wine, if they really needed to have this discussion at all that was.  
"A friend that is asking you over for dinner tomorrow night? Or apparently lunch if you would prefer" Alex continued to explain, and Olivia was officially confused. Why was Elliot inviting her over to dinner? He didn't need to do that.  
"He just sent you a text message, don't decline his offer on my account" Alex started to tease as she held the phone out to Olivia once they were inside the apartment and sure enough, on her screen there was a new text from Elliot.  
"So...Are you going to accept his offer? It sounds like he really wants you to go over? Also, he has kids? Were those the kids that were with you in the attack?" Alex continued to ask to which Olivia just nodded, her best friend was hitting the nail on the head here.  
"Yes, that was Elizabeth and Richard Stabler, Elliot's children but we really are _just _friends. I'm not sure it's really wise for me to accept his invitation to dinner or lunch. His daughter is in my class and I really don't want things to be taken the wrong way and making that awkward. He's a genuinely good guy and I really enjoy spending time with him a lot" Olivia explained.  
"Sounds like to me firstly, you need to accept his offer for dinner and secondly that we have a whole topic to properly discuss"  
"We're going to need some serious wine for that discussion"  
"I mean what I said first though, tell that man that you would love to come to dinner tomorrow night, I'll look after Chloe" Alex remarked to which Olivia just smiled. She did like the thought of going to dinner with Elliot and the twins. She liked the thought of spending more time with them all but particularly with Elliot.

**Olivia: Dinner tomorrow night sounds wonderful. The appreciation really isn't necessary but I will never turn down a good meal and great company. Let me know what time and if I can bring anything? My friend, Alex, is going to stay home with Chloe for me :) **Olivia quickly replied to Elliot before putting her phone to the side, deciding that her focus should be on her friend who was with her right now rather than just texting with Elliot, even if she did want to continue this discussion.

* * *

Alex was sure something more serious was going on with her, this 'Elliot' was clearly more than just a friend to her or at least there were hopes that he'd be more than just a friend. Alex was the kind of person who really wanted to know more about this Elliot and help her friend come to see that if she was in fact finding herself thinking of him like more than a friend, that was ok. She just wanted Olivia to be happy and after everything she had been through with Brian, she deserved it. Alex knew that she would get her friend talking about Elliot and she would simply do more digging in it later tonight. Alex was convinced that these feelings were more than just _friendly _and she would get her best friend to see that. She would also try to get her best friend to be interested in hopefully pursuing a relationship with this man and pursuing her happiness. Alex knew that if this man was inviting Olivia over for dinner then it wasn't really a 'meal of appreciation' or anything, it was a meal that was meant to have a deeper meaning on the whole. Alex knew this from personal experience, dinner was never just a 'thank you'.

But Alex had concerns, she was concerned about how much this man, who Olivia had been spending so much time with, actually knew about Olivia's past. Alex knew that Olivia was a very private person when it came to her past and especially when it came to Brian. No-one outside of family or close friends knew that Brian was Chloe's father or even really about Brian's existence and as far as Olivia was concerned, they never would. Alex agreed with this as really, it wasn't anyone else's business except those that were close to her or had been there through it all. Alex had the hope though, that whoever Olivia did have a relationship with in the future, would come to love her and care for her like she deserved. Alex hoped that this future man, would show Olivia how amazing true love can be and that not all men are like Brian.

_FLASHBACK_

_Alex sat at the back of the diner in a booth by the window, she was in a spot that would be private but it was visible enough that Olivia should easily see her when she walked in. Olivia had called her at 2am this morning and Alex had instantly known something was wrong. Olivia had been in a completely emotional state, in a way that Alex had never seen her like before. Alex had been so concerned for her friend at the time that she had spent over 2 hours on the phone with Olivia, just talking, and trying to calm Olivia down whilst getting to the bottom of what happened. The pair had agreed to meet at the local diner, where they often grabbed a meal or a coffee and then they would be able to talk it through in person. The main issue was to do with Brian and Alex needed to get her best friend away from him in a place they could talk. Alex didn't want to be anywhere near the horrid man that Brian was. _

_Alex had been telling Olivia that she needed to leave Brian forr the longest time but she wouldn't. That was the issue with being in love with someone, is that you often don't listen to what others day. Olivia kept telling Alex that things would get better. She kept telling Alex that she and Brian were in love and that real love means you don't just walk away and give up when things get tough. But Alex definitely had to admit that she had different opinions on this as real love shouldn't cause so much pain._

_Alex waved as Olivia walked into the diner and already Alex could tell that she'd been attacked last night. The woman had a slight limp as she walked over and it was as clear as anything to Alex that there was make up trying to hide the bruising on her cheek, her top lip was also swollen. It was times like this that Alex really wanted to take Olivia away from it all because it was clear that she was in no position to take much more of this._  
_"It's really not as bad as you are thinking" Olivia greeted._  
_"Really? You have a nasty bruise on your cheek and I know you're trying to hide it with make up but it's simply not working well. Not to mention, your limp" Alex replied, she wasn't going to take her friends dismissal as everything was normal when it clearly wasn't._  
_"We just had a slight disagreement with dinner, Brian has apologised since" Olivia replied._  
_"Apologies don't take the pain away"_  
_"But I love him"_  
_"Love shouldn't be violent Liv, love is supposed to bring a smile to your face everytime you think of that special person. Love is supposed to give you those butterfly stomach feelings and you are supposed to be happy. But when I look at you, I can only see pain" Alex explained as her friend looked away again. Alex knew all too well that her friend didn't want to believe what she was saying. Olivia truly felt like she loved Brian and she didn't want to believe that what he was doing was actually wrong. But Alex just wanted to save her friend. _  
_"He does love me, I know he does and I love him"_  
_"But you deserve SO much better than this Liv! You can't keep putting yourself through it, you can't keep doing this" Alex tried to convince her friend again but she knew deep down olivia wasn't listening._  
_"I'd be lost without Brian, I can't just leave him" Olivia replied once more. _  
_END FLASHBACK_

Alex knew that Olivia was now thriving in New York but she knew the attack the other day would have shaken her up a bit. It would have given her serious flashbacks to Brian, all because of the psycho who had lost control in the lobby of the hotel. Alex knew Olivia would talk to her about it when she was ready and now was not that time yet. It was likely going to be one of those "late night and wine" talks that they would have whilst Alex was here. Alex knew she was really going to have to start making a mental list in regards to what they needed to talk about. Thankfully Alex had at least a week here in New York, with the flexibility to extend her time here if she was needed. She had a lot of leave banked up from the law firm she worked for and had finished a few really big cases recently so she deserved to take this time off. There was really no where she would rather spend her time off than with Olivia and Chloe or with her boyfriend Micah.

* * *

The following afternoon, Elliot was rushing around the apartment like a headless chicken. Olivia had actually agreed to come over for dinner tonight and he felt like nothing was even close to ready. They had bene to Richard's soccer game this morning and he'd scored the 2 winning goals in the game so they'd then gone out to lunch with friends to celebrate. But in the process of doing so, he'd been left with limited time to get everything ready for dinner that he needed. Thankfully though he had a collection of staff who were on hand to assist with anything that he may require. Elizabeth and Richard were entertaining themselves in their rooms and Elliot had already confirmed the meal with chef. Olivia would arrive about 6:30pm and dinner would be at 7pm tonight. This was a little later than usual for the twins but chef had asked for more time to make sure the meal was right and Elliot had said that would be fine as Chef had agreed to his meal choice. Elliot already knew that Olivia wouldn't mind with a slight change in timings. He was just flad that she had even agreed to come to dinner tonight.

"Daddy" Elizabeth asked and Elliot looked up from where he was organising things in the living room. Elizabeth was standing by the bottom of the stairs looking at him intently.  
"Yes honey?" Elliot answered  
"What time is Miss Benson coming here? I want to make sure my drawing for her is good" Elizabeth asked.  
"She will be here in about 2 hours but honey I'm sure she'll love your picture with whatever it looks like, I know it because you drew it" Elliot explained.  
"But it's a gift daddy and so it needs to be the best I done"  
"Alright well then like I said, she will be here in 2 hours so at 6:30pm. That's when the clock in your room reads 6 and a 3 and a 0" Elliot tried to assist the little girl.  
"I know what 6:30 looks like daddy. Miss Benson teached me in school when we did time" Elizabeth replied before running back upstairs to her room again.  
"Of course she did" Elliot said as he watched Elizabeth run back upstairs. He likely had just enough time to check on both twins again, shower and get changed into something more presentable before Olivia would arrive. He just couldn't shake this nervous feeling he had at the moment. It was Olivia, they had spent time together before, they had hung out and so he didn't understand why he was so nervous now. Tonight, just felt different to him, tonight felt like it was a special night and the night for change.

Elliot had to admit that he had more than one reason for his invitation to dinner tonight, he wanted to show Olivia his appreciation for everything that she had done during the attack. But he also wanted the opportunity to talk to Olivia about these feelings that he had, he knew he couldn't keep putting them of like he had. The attack and everything with Dani in the past had made Elliot realise how much he wanted to see what was growing between them. It had shown him how much he wanted to be able to show affection towards Olivia in ways more than a friend could. He really wasn't sure that Olivia felt the same, in fact he was pretty certain she felt the opposite and that they were just friends. But he couldn't keep everything in anymore. Elliot felt like tonight would be that night where he discussed this with Olivia.

* * *

_**A/N: Next chapter; Dinner but...what's going to happen?**_

_**What did you think of this chapter? What do you think is going to happen in the next? let me know by leaving me a review :D  
Until Next Time :)**_


	20. Dinner

_**A/N: So i have re-written and edited this chapter 3 times, i hope it does it justice, that's all i'm going to say. Please enjoy :)**_

**Chapter 20: Dinner**

Olivia had started to doubt herself now, she had been doing so for the past couple of hours and she knew it was because of how nervous she felt. But she didn't understand exactly why she was feeling so nervous. It was just dinner. It was just with the Stabler's. But that was exactly the reason for her nerves – because she was having dinner with Elliot. She shouldn't have said yes, she shouldn't have agreed as this was going to ruin everything. They were friends, but they weren't the kind of friends that did dinner like this. Elliot was sending his car for her any minute now and Olivia was still standing in front of her bathroom mirror, going over the final parts of her outfit for what was likely the millionth time. She was doubting her outfit choice for the night as much as she was doubting the whole idea of the dinner.

"Relax" Alex said as she appeared in the doorway.  
"You look lovely, and I'm more than sure Elliot will agree" Alex continued, to which Olivia just gave her a look. She hadn't dressed for Elliot tonight, she simply dressed to look nice. She knew that there was a dress she currently had at the back of her closet, that she'd wear if she was dressing for Elliot. _Stop it _Olivia reprimanded herself, as she started to think about that dress. She'd only ever worn it a couple of times to impress men in specific situations. She'd bought it after leaving Brian and losing her baby weight. She'd bought it when she thought she was ready to get back into the dating game. She'd worn it on a few nights out but not followed through in any of the attention she had received. She hoped that one day there was a time she would wear it again with the right reason to do so and the right man to want to impress.  
"I didn't dress for Elliot, it's dinner with him and his kids" Olivia replied.  
"Just remember what we discussed last night" Alex remarked before walking away from the bathroom once more to leave Olivia to finalise her outfit.

* * *

Olivia and Alex had stayed up for hours last night, talking everything through. Alex had been the shoulder to cry on and the best listening ear that Olivia needed with the whole attack and the situation with Dani and Elliot. They had discussed in detail about the things which Dani had screamed at Olivia in the hotel lobby. Alex had explained that this woman was so obviously disturbed on deeper levels than anyone would have know about and nothing that she had said could really be taken to heart. However Olivia had already spent hours playing it over in her mind after it happened, questioning if the things she had been called were what the rest of the world just saw of her, if it was what Elliot and the kids saw her like. Olivia had expressed this to Alex who instantly denied it, she had explained that Elliot clearly thought a lot more of her if he was texting her all the time and wanting her over for dinner. Olivia couldn't accept that though.

The conversation had then shifted to something much, much lighter and less traumatic for Olivia, the conversation shifted to Elliot. Alex wanted to know everything about what was going on with that situation. She wanted to know everything, including the details about whether or not Olivia was actually interested in him like he was showing he clearly was for her, with the dinner invitation. Olivia didn't see the dinner invitation as a sign that Elliot wanted something with her, she knew he was just doing it out of courtesy to say thank you for everything she had helped him with. But Olivia had been honest with Alex, she had told her friend about the way she truly felt towards Elliot. She had told Alex that she had really enjoyed all the time she spent with Elliot, she told her about the way Olivia had thought for ages about what it had felt like to be hugged by him, the feeling of being close to him. Olivia had even confessed about how she had found herself thinking about Elliot way more than she'd like to admit. It was clear as anything to Alex that Olivia really did have developing serious feelings for this 'Elliot' and she had told Olivia to just follow her heart. Alex advised Olivia to go with what her heart was telling her in any moment. It was the way that she had become involved with Micah and that relationship between Alex and Micah was really special right now. Olivia couldn't necessarily agree with this advice though and just take the moment if it arises, but she appreciated Alex's help and assistance and the opportunity to just talk it through.

* * *

"Daddy, Miss Benson's here!" Dickie called up the stairs to where his father was finishing getting ready. Elliot's driver had messaged when he'd collected Olivia so that Elliot would know the rough time they would get back to his building. Surprisingly, they were here a couple of minutes early to Elliot's assumption based on what his driver had said it had taken before, to get from Olivia's place back to the hotel. Elliot didn't know where Olivia lived as it wasn't like he'd ever been there but he was grateful for the insight from his driver. Elliot heard Olivia's voice downstairs, as he appeared at the top of the stairs and he watched as she interacted with his children as he walked down. The minute he laid eyes on her, he thought she looked absolutely beautiful. Olivia was dressed in a nice dark blue dress with black heels and her hair was actually down and appeared to be curled. Elliot had only ever seen Olivia with her hair up, as she always had it up at school and the time they saw at the park, but he really liked this look with her hair down. He could tell that she had make up on but it didn't appear to be quite as much as the other day, at least not around her eye, which he hoped meant it was getting better. The swelling definitely appeared to have gone down from when he saw her at the precinct.  
"Hi" Olivia greeted, as she spotted standing watching her on the stairs.  
"Hey, thanks for coming" Elliot greeted as he continued down the last few stairs. He was a little embarrassed that he'd been found out staring at her.  
"Thank you for the invitation" Olivia replied.  
"Daddy, how pretty does she look?! I really like your dress Miss Benson" Elizabeth spoke up and Olivia just smiled appreciatively. Elliot always thought she had a beautiful smile.  
"I think you look very nice" Elliot replied as Olivia smiled at him again. But on the inside, Olivia was really hoping that he couldn't see that she was blushing from his compliment.

"Um, would like a drink? Dinner is still going to be about 20 minutes, sorry" Elliot asked, trying to think of what next to offer her. He was normally good at being a host but apparently not tonight. He blamed the nerves that he was still feeling.  
"That is perfectly fine and thank you, a drink would be lovely" Olivia replied as she walked towards the living room with the twins, where Elizabeth was desperate to show her something.  
"What would you like? We have a selection of alcoholic and non-alcoholic beverages? Wine, Beer, Spirits, Soda…?" Elliot offered.  
"I want an alcohol…alcoholic beverage?" Dickie spoke up, almost questioning whether he'd even said the words right.  
"Yeah not till your older buddy" Elliot replied, causing laughter amongst the two adults from the boys efforts.  
"A wine would be lovely" Olivia replied though and Elliot just nodded before setting about getting the drinks organised whilst Olivia had a conversation with the twins about their day.

Richard was desperate to tell Olivia all about his soccer game today and the two goals he scored for the team, Olivia listened very intently to the little boy and asked questions. Elliot couldn't help but admire the way that Olivia was so invested with his children and he knew that she cared a great deal for them and their needs. She was an amazing woman all around basically and he felt very lucky to personally know such an amazing woman.

* * *

When dinner was ready, the four of them were more than ready to eat. Elizabeth and Olivia sat on one side of the dinner table in the dining room whilst Elliot and Dickie sat on the other. Dickie wanted to sit opposite Olivia as he couldn't sit next to her, but Elliot managed to steal the seat just before his son. Olivia could see the slight smirk on his face as he did so, simply over the fact that he had secured the seat first which made her laugh to herself, she didn't think her attention was quite so fought over. She did like that she could look up from time to time and steal glances towards Elliot though.

The conversation around the dinner table was light but entertaining, largely being kept by the twins with the different stories they were desperate to tell. But there was a second conversation going on between the adults in the room simply from the looks that they were giving each other across the dinner table. Olivia felt a small flutter in her stomach with the way that Elliot would softly smile at her when he saw her watching him. She had never been quite so glad that the twins were here like she was at the moment as they could distract attention easily for the adults. It wasn't that Elliot and Olivia didn't want to talk to one another, it was more the fact they likely had the same thing on their minds right now.

"So daddy, now Lizzie and me talked to the police man and Miss Benson has too…is Dani going to come back?" Richard asked, drawing attention from the adults and Olivia could easily see the little boy was rather scared with the thought of Dani coming back.  
"I don't want Dani back" Elizabeth replied.  
"I don't know exactly what will happen yet but I don't worry, I promise you I'm not going to let Dani anywhere near you" Elliot tried to comfort the fears of his children.  
"Can you come look after us when daddy has to work again Miss Benson?" Elizabeth asked, putting Olivia on the spot. She'd not thought of being the one to care for the twins again after the attack and Elliot had never asked her to.  
"I-" Olivia stuttered.  
"Lizzie, honey miss Benson and I haven't talk about that and I don't want you to pressure her into it. Besides, I have a surprise. I spoke with Nanny last night and she is going to come to New York to stay with us for a while next Saturday" Elliot stepped in before Olivia could finish, he didn't want her to feel like she had to look after his kids, he wasn't intending to ask her to do so either.  
"But…it's Saturday now daddy and who is going to look after us when we finish school till then?" Richard asked, concerned for what would come next.  
"Me" Elliot replied.  
"Daddy but you have work?" Richard asked and even Olivia was intrigued as to what Elliot would say next. She had expected that he was going to ask her to look after the twins again or he would put something else in place to support the twins. It didn't appear to be that way though.  
"I do and I will be going to work in the mornings and when you are at school but I've been able to look at my time these past couple of days and I've moved things so I can pick you up every day" Elliot explained whilst both twins were shocked they would actually be picked up by their dad instead of a babysitter or someone else.

* * *

Later that evening, both twins were upstairs in bed and Elliot had already tucked them in for the night. Olivia had shared a quick joke with him about being the favourite when Elizabeth asked for Olivia to be the one to tuck her in rather than Elliot. But Elliot had enjoyed the joke in good humour and he'd still checked on the little girl. Now, they were sitting in the living room just Elliot and Olivia. Both of them had a glass of wine and were talking about a range of different things, enjoying the company since the twins had gone to bed. Olivia knew it was getting rather late and she should look at going home but she was in no rush to leave.  
"Thank you again for coming to dinner" Elliot spoke up after the pair had been sitting in silence for a couple of minutes.  
"Thank you again for the invitation. You know it really wasn't necessary to go to such effort just to say thank you. I honestly didn't mind looking after the kids and I wasn't going to let anything happen to them" Olivia replied,  
"That may be but I didn't invite you to dinner just to say thank you, in fact if I'm honest here, I did it as an excuse to spend time with you. But I wanted to make sure we did something proper to say thank you for everything you have done for us" Elliot tried to explain, feeling the need to confess to Olivia his true intentions behind dinner.  
"Well either way, I appreciate the invitation and the effort you went to" Olivia replied, smiling at Elliot again.  
"Even if you didn't accept right away?" Elliot teased.  
"Well no, but I had my reasons?"  
"Like?"  
"It's not exactly common for teachers to be going to students houses and having dinner" Olivia explained, reminding herself about how truly inappropriate this situation really was.  
"But it's not exactly common for parents to be inviting their child's teacher over for dinner either? Or is it?" Elliot replied.  
"Well no, that is also true" Olivia stated before taking another sip of her wine and watching Elliot over the wine glass. She could sense something was different with him now the kids were in bed, there was something different in his gaze. It was in the way he was looking at her and she couldn't help to wonder what was on his mind, was there something he wanted to tell her?

"So you're not working as much next week then?" Olivia asked, trying to change topic of the conversation.  
"I have no one who can look after the twins outside of school and I feel like they aren't really in a position to be comfortable being left with someone else at the moment" Elliot explained.  
"But you're not doing the morning drop off? Who are they going to be with then? I mean I think your decision is wise as I think they may need you more than you realise at the moment" Olivia explained, Elliot couldn't help but smile, this woman had taught him so much about seeing his children's needs.  
"I've discussed it with Bertie and Parker and they are going to make sure the twins get off alright, Lizzie and Dickie know Bertie and Parker so they should be fine and I know Lizzie will be fine knowing she can see you when she gets to school" Elliot paused.  
"But I think you are also right about them needing me and well we have you to thank for that" Elliot continued.  
"Excuse me?" Olivia asked, what was Elliot trying to get at now? Was he saying that the attack and the fragile state his children were in was her fault?  
"No, sorry, that came out wrong. What I meant was that we have you to thank again for opening my eyes to see what my children need and want. I think I'd still be my old business focused self if it wasn't for you" Elliot apologised.  
"My stubbornness to find out who was mystery dad you mean?"  
"What? Mystery Dad? And no I mean your care and your dedication towards the children that you teach. I've honestly never met someone who has quite as much determination to see things right with their students, as you do" Elliot explained.  
"I have seen what happens with students who don't get the support and love from their parents that they deserve. Your two children are far too special for that to happen to" Olivia explained.  
"Well they're very lucky to have someone who cares so much about them and would help out with whatever she could, we all are" Elliot replied as he locked eyes with Olivia. He could feel this pull towards her and couldn't fight it. Olivia was feeling the same thing and couldn't fight it either. _Go with your heart _Olivia remembered from what Alex had told her yesterday. She had an idea what was coming and she wanted it, it was something she had thought about a lot. Elliot's eyes were drawn down to Olivia's approaching lips whilst Olivia felt like she couldn't breathe with the closer she and Elliot got. Was this really going to happen?

3…Their heads were almost touching, and it wasn't going to be long till Elliot's lips connected with Olivia's but still neither pulled away.  
2…Elliot couldn't stop now and he just prayed that this wouldn't ruin the friendship they already had. Maybe this would bring the start of something better than what they ever had before and maybe it was what was meant to happen. He just couldn't fight the urge to want to kiss her.  
1…

_**A/N: *Gasp* what is going to happen? Are they going to kiss? Is it going to ruin everything? Will one of them pull away at the last moment? Guess you'll have to wait to the next chapter to find out! Leave me a review and let me know what you think ;) Thank you as always, for all the wonderful reviews you leave for me and i hope you liked this chapter!  
Until Next Time :D**_


	21. Kiss

**Chapter 21: Kiss**

The moment their lips touched, sparks ignited between the pair. Elliot couldn't believe that he was doing this, that he was actually kissing Olivia and that she hasn't pulled away yet. Elliot couldn't tell whether he was making a huge mistake here or not but the fact Olivia hadn't pulled away yet had to be a positive sign. Olivia on the other hand, felt like she was floating, her head felt completely clouded right now with thoughts and it was almost like she was having an outer body experience right now. Was she really kissing Elliot? Was she really dreaming right now or was this happening? How much wine had she really drunk tonight? Was it really just wine or had Elliot done something else to it as well? _Elliot would never _Olivia reprimanded herself. The thing was, Olivia really didn't want to stop, she didn't want to pull away from Elliot. She didn't want this moment to end. Once this moment was over, they would have to talk about it and the mistake would be obvious. When the need for oxygen became apparent though and only then, did they pull away.

Olivia could tell from just looking at Elliot that he was going to apologise but she didn't want him to. This was not a mistake, she had been wanting to kiss him just as much as he had.  
"Sorry th-" Elliot tried to start but Olivia shook her head and pulled his head closer to hers, kissing him softly once more. She wanted to prove to him that he hadn't done anything wrong, he didn't have anything to apologise to her for. There was a clear underlying passion with the kiss and Elliot found himself wanting to hold Olivia a little closer, so he placed her his hands on her waist, hoping it wasn't overstepping.  
"Um" Elliot started but he was lost for words when they pulled apart once more. Olivia just smiled at him softly as she too was lost for words as she took her wine glass from the table once more.  
"That was…" Olivia was almost lost for words or understanding how to proceed in conversation.  
"Yeah" Elliot replied just smiling softly at her, there was more of a conversation going on between their glances at the moment.

The conversation was awkward now, it wasn't that either of them wanted it to be but neither were really sure how to approach what had happened in terms of words. Neither were sure what it really meant either. Elliot opened and closed his mouth numerous times, trying to work out how to get them out of the awkwardness.  
"Ok, I'm just going to say it…I've wanted to do that for a while and it was…better than I ever imagined" Elliot started, wanting to cringe with how awkward everything felt.  
"I think it's been coming for a while" Olivia replied, hinting at the feelings between them having changed for a while.  
"I have to admit, I've felt my feelings with you change in the time I've spent with you" Elliot smiled softly, he was prepared to take the next step if she was.  
"So I guess my question is…where does that leave us?" Olivia asked, this was kind of what they were already talking about but someone had to verbalise it.  
"I want to give us a shot. I want to see where this takes us and I really feel like we have something special here"  
"I just…I don't want to ruin what we already have though, I don't want to lose this friendship. We may have come to get to know each other in a less than traditional way, considering I'm your daughters teacher and everything. I feel really strongly towards you, I think of you as one of my closest friends and I don't want to lose everything with you or make it awkward if things go wrong" Olivia voiced her concerns, it wasn't saying no to Elliot, it was just being honest and making him aware of how she felt.  
"But I think we could have something so, so much better if we followed these instincts. Olivia, we can take it as slow as you want to and go with whatever you feel comfortable with but I'm promising you right now, I'm all in, you won't lose me" Elliot explained, taking Olivia's hand in his and squeezing it softly whilst looking her directly in the eyes. He was speaking from the heart here and he wanted her to see how serious about this he was.

Olivia could hear Alex in the back of her mind, she could hear Alex telling her to trust her gut, go with the feelings that she obviously has but has been too scared to act on. She valued her connection with Elliot too much, she really enjoyed spending time with him and she didn't want to act on these feelings, everything go wrong and she lose her friendship with Elliot for good. But he was here now telling her she'd never lose him, Olivia didn't understand how he could know that but he was confessing it and surely that had to mean something.  
"How do you know that? How do you know that we won't ruin everything we already have…how do you know we won't end up breaking and in the process breaking your children's hearts too. If we give us a go, and it goes wrong I could lose my job or you would end up hating me and wanting to move your kids away from the school" Olivia voiced her concerns, this was why she was so scared. She had been in love and been hurt before, it was worse now as there were going to be kids involved and she couldn't be responsible for breaking their hearts too, she cared too much for them.

"I can say it because I've never felt the way I feel for you, for anyone else. When Parker called my assistant, Ashley about the attack and I knew you were there, I felt like my heart was in my throat with worry. I was concerned for my kids but I was also more concerned for you. That moment made me realise I don't want to be just friends with you anymore, I want to be more, I want to see what we can be together, and I think it will be truly magical" Elliot confessed, and Olivia knew he was really speaking from the heart now. She was scared, she didn't know if she was prepared to go with everything her heart was telling her to do, she wasn't sure if she could handle getting her heart broken again. But then again, she never thought she'd ever find a man like Elliot in this lifetime and here he was, wanting to be with her. Olivia knew that if she didn't take this chance that was being handed to her now, they may never know what could have been between them.  
"I hope you're right" Olivia said as Elliot leant forward once more and took Olivia's lips in his, kissing her softly and showing her that he wasn't going to let anything happen to them. They weren't just friends anymore, they were a couple, they were going to take things slowly, but Elliot was excited for what was to come.

Olivia and Elliot spent the next few hours just wrapped up in each other, talking, kissing and just enjoying each other's company. There was plenty of wine which was consumed but neither of them got particularly intoxicated. They had agreed that they wouldn't try and hide their relationship or what had changed between them, but they would be selective as to the way they acted when in public. For example, they agreed that they would be professional when at school and when they were around the children, they would simply remain friendly for now. However, if they were alone like now or if they were in private then Elliot had already to Olivia he would seize the moment with her if he could. He would always be the proper gentleman in doing so though. Elliot had told Olivia they would take things at her pace, they would go with however comfortable she was, he just wanted her to be happy. Olivia appreciated this and was intrigued by what lay ahead for them in the future.

* * *

Olivia knew that as time continued to tick on, that she would have to leave soon and started to make the move from next to Elliot, to finding her shoes and getting her coat from by the door. Elliot followed her towards the elevator and held out her coat as she gathered her things and then graciously stepped into her coat. Elliot had already organised for the car to be waiting downstairs to take her home once again.  
"Thank you for dinner" Olivia said as she turned to face Elliot after putting her coat on.  
"Thank you for coming. Let me know when you get home" Elliot requested, he knew she would be fine but he wanted to know she had got home safely as he couldn't leave with her.  
"I am going in your car though right? I mean surely your driver will let you know when I'm home?" Olivia asked,  
"But I won't see him again tonight and I'm not just going to make him come up to tell me when he gets back. I just want to know your safely home and I'd much rather hear it all from you anyway" Elliot requested, kissing her again whilst he had the chance.  
"Ok, I'll text you when I'm inside again" Olivia smiled as she placed her hand on the side of Elliot's face, brushing it softly with her thumb, she really appreciated how much he cared but it was just going to be something she had to get used to. Things weren't like this with Brian and she'd never known a man to care so much for her safety so this would be a change.

"Thank you, when can I see you again?" Elliot asked, he wanted every opportunity he could take to see her again so he was desperate to know when he could. He knew she had a friend in town and obviously a young daughter to care for, so her time was short but he wanted to make sure there was opportunities to be with her.  
"I haven't even left yet and you already want to see me again?" Olivia teased him.  
"well…what can I say, you're someone who I enjoy spending time with and now have all the more reason to"  
"Your cute…But to answer your question, Alex, Chloe and I are going to the zoo tomorrow afternoon as Chloe wants to see the monkeys. I don't suppose you and the twins would want to come?"  
"We'd love to"  
"You're not even going to ask them first? Just going to accept?" Olivia queried.  
"I don't have to, I already know that they would want to go. So, let me know what time and we'll come pick you all up" Elliot replied, he knew the minute he mentioned Miss Benson both twins would be on board with doing whatever he said.  
"You don't need to do that, I really doubt all 6 of us and your driver would fit in your car anyway. Alex, Chloe and I will simply meet you there"  
"You're never going to just let me do anything for you are you?" Elliot asked which made Olivia laugh. She really wasn't one for letting people do things for her like this. She had fought for almost everything she had when she was with Brian, she couldn't just stop now. She appreciated Elliot's attempts at chivalry and wanting to do things for her, she just had a hard time at letting him.

"Alright, now I really have to go or I'm never going to leave" Olivia changed the topic.  
"There is nothing wrong with that" Elliot replied, he didn't have a problem with Olivia staying here forever, they may be brand new as a couple but he liked the idea of her staying over in the future.  
"There is nothing wrong with that" Elliot teased.  
"I think I have a best friend and a daughter who would disagree with you on that one. I'll text you when I get home and I can now say I'll see you tomorrow" Olivia replied as she kissed him one last time.  
"Good night Olivia" Elliot said as they pulled apart once more.  
"Good night Elliot" Olivia replied as she stepped into the now open elevator and Elliot waited till the doors were closed and the floor level numbers were going down, before heading upstairs.

* * *

Olivia couldn't quite believe the evening that tonight had turned into. What had started out as _just_ dinner, had been great with the twins and then taken a massive turn after they went to bed. She had been right to think that there was something more growing between her and Elliot. There were definite feelings between them which was a large surprise to Olivia. She never would have thought that a guy like Elliot would ever be interested in someone like her. But he was, which was surprising to her. However, Olivia knew that kissing him felt better than she had ever expected it to, and it was a feeling that she knew she was going to love most. The first few kisses they shared were awkward and a little unexpected but they could get better with practice.

Olivia had to admit she had been surprised that he had automatically agreed to coming to the zoo with them all tomorrow, she hadn't expected that but she could admit she was already looking forward to seeing him again. Although Olivia had to admit she was a little bit nervous as to having Elliot close by when Alex was around, after tonight's events. She and Elliot had agreed to that when in company or around the kids, they would keep things to a minimum as everything was so new. Bu that didn't mean they wouldn't look for an opportunity to steal a kiss or something. Olivia just had to hope that Alex would be under control tomorrow and not feel the need to interrogate Elliot about anything. She also suspected that with Chloe, Elizabeth and Richard around, things would likely be drawn to them rather than to Olivia and Elliot.

As Olivia made her way inside her apartment building, she knew it was highly likely Alex would still be up. She braced herself for the interrogation over the evening from her friend and what types of questions were going to be asked. She also knew that if she told Alex about how Elliot and his kids would be joining them at the zoo tomorrow, Olivia was going to need to be on her guard all day tomorrow, as Alex would be watching. Olivia wasn't entirely sure how this was all going to move forward, especially whilst Alex was in town, but she was prepared to try it the best that she could.

* * *

**Olivia: Home now, safe and sound. Thank you for a wonderful evening and I promise I'll let you know what time we are going to the zoo and where to meet tomorrow, when we've decided xx **Elliot read Olivia's message as he climbed into bed for the evening. He was glad to hear Olivia was home safe but he couldn't lie, he was already counting down the hours till he could see her again tomorrow. He didn't have to hide how much he felt for Olivia anymore, he had kissed her tonight and she'd kissed him back. She was even the one to initiate the second kiss right after the first one. She was the one who had silenced him from talking with a kiss. Elliot had never felt something quite like kissing Olivia, it was better than anything else.

He wasn't trying to jinx anything with them in the future, and he cared about Olivia far too much to want to think too far ahead in the future or work on them too fast. But he really felt like in the time that he'd had getting to know her so far and all the thoughts about getting to know her more in the future, Elliot could see them being husband and wife one day. He wouldn't admit that he was in love with Olivia yet, as it was too early to say whether that was true. But he could see himself falling in love with her fast and hard, and he could see them growing old together. She really was one of a kind and he'd been completely blown away by her tonight.

**Elliot: Glad you got home safe! Thank you for coming to dinner and I want you to know, I'm already counting the hours till I can see you again. Sleep well xxx **Elliot quickly typed a response and sent it to her before placing his phone down for the evening. He was going to have dreams filled with a certain lady and the memories of tonight, so Elliot already knew he was going to sleep the best he had in a while and he hoped that she did too.

* * *

_**A/N: So there we have it, the feelings are out in the open and kisses have been shared, but where are they going to go from here? How are they going to go at the zoo? Guess you'll have to wait for the next chapter to find out!  
I don't know about the rest of you but I'm so glad that they FINALLY admitted the way they feel about each other!**_

_**Also I just wanted to add a note, a lot of you have been asking about why Olivia won't just tell Elliot about her past or when she will do it. Some of you are saying that she shouldn't be hiding so much. But Olivia's past with Brian is very messy and very personal, she doesn't completely trust Elliot yet to tell him and she doesn't want him to see her differently with this, it's explained more in upcoming chapters with events that are coming (I've just written it into the upcoming chapters). I think, she will come to tell him but we will see..**_

_**Let me know what you thought of this chapter in a review! I love to read them and please, feel free to message me if you have any further questions or feedback, I'm always happy to chat with all of you lovely readers of mine!  
Until Next Time :)**_


	22. The Zoo

**Chapter 22: The Zoo**

Alex had actually gone to bed before Olivia had go home from Elliot's but she was up and prepared to start an interrogation the following morning. Chloe had been awake with Olivia since 5 am, which as she'd had a late night the night before, meant she was feeling particularly tired right now. Thankfully though by getting up and attending to Chloe, it meant that Alex had been able to sleep in. The pair had simply watched some cartoons at a low volume on the television this morning.  
"Al!" Chloe squealed the minute she spotted her favourite aunty emerging from the bedroom.  
"Hi you!" Alex greeted as the little girl climbed off the couch and ran over.  
"Hey Chlo, lets give aunty Alex a moment to wake up sweetie, before you turn her into a jungle gym. Alex, there is coffee waiting in the kitchen" Olivia reminded the little girl as she could clearly see her friend needed a few minutes to wake up before her daughter bombarded her.  
"You know me too well" Alex remarked as she headed into the kitchenette in Olivia's apartment to get a coffee.

"So Chloe was telling me you guys watched Doc McStuffins last night and read 2 books before bed which is lucky as mommy only usually reads one book" Olivia remarked as Alex came back over towards the lounge room and took a seat on the couch next to Olivia.  
"We certainly did and I think Doc McStuffins is my new favourite show and what good am I as an aunty if I can't spoil her when mommy's out" Alex remarked as Chloe made quick work to get into the spot between the pair rather than being in her mothers lap.  
"Well Chloe definitely loves Doc McStuffins"  
"An Aun Al" Chloe protested.  
"Yes of course, and you love Aunty Al" Olivia remarked as she smiled at her little girl.

* * *

"So, how was last night?" Alex asked, trying to change the topic to something she had been dying to talk about since she'd heard Olivia get home last night. Whilst Olivia had thought that Alex was asleep, truthfully, she was just in her room talking on face time with Micah. Alex watched as Olivia just smiled at herself whilst gazing into her morning coffee, it was clear something had happened last night. It was just a question now of whether she could get out what that was from her friend or not.  
"It was…lovely" Olivia responded to the question.  
"Well I think from your reaction, it was a bit more than lovely" Alex teased.  
"No, it was very nice. I really enjoyed being able to spend time with Elliot and the kids. It turns out the twins are really good at Uno and go fish as they beat me every time" Olivia replied. Alex knew that Olivia was deflecting the attention to that of the children which meant that something serious had happened and she only hoped it was positive.  
"And Elliot?" Alex continued to prod.  
"He's really good at both go fish and uno but the twins still beat him" Olivia laughed, she knew this wasn't what her friend wanted to know.  
"No he was really good too, I stayed till after the twins had gone to bed and we spent time just talking. He and the twins are going to be joining us at the zoo today" Olivia answered, she hoped the mention about the zoo would cause Chloe to join in and distract this interrogation.  
"Oh really? Any particular reason for that?" Alex asked, she just wouldn't let it go.

"Ok, fine. Elliot and I are…looking into things between us, there may or may not have been a kiss or two last night" Olivia admitted defeat, she would just give in to Alex now.  
"Go You! Did you kiss him first or did he kiss you first?"  
"Oh my god I'm not discussing that with you and it's not important. We are keeping it private from the kids and work, so don't expect us to be like….overly romantic or anything when they come to the zoo with us. You better be on you best behaviour though" Olivia warned to which Alex just nodded. She was now determined to try and get more information out of Elliot at the zoo, despite this being the first time she would meet him. Alex's duty as a best friend was to make sure that this man was going to treat Olivia right and make sure her best friend was not going to be put through everything that Brian had put her through all over again.

* * *

Elliot stood with Elizabeth and Richard, by the entrance to the zoo. They were waiting for Olivia, Chloe and her friend whose name he didn't know, to arrive. Olivia had texted him earlier this morning to let him know that they wouldn't be heading out till early afternoon as Chloe needed to go down for a nap. This suited him and the twins perfectly though, as Elliot had to work on a few things at home for the business and then he spent the extra time he had reading with both twins, to ensure they kept improving in their reading. By the time this was done, they had lunch and it was time to get ready to leave. Olivia had once again refused to be picked up or take the car from them despite how much Elliot had offered, she had instead insisted that they would all meet at the zoo. Elliot couldn't say how things were going to go today considering that things had changed between him and Olivia last night and they weren't planning on telling the kids or anyone yet. They were simply going to play things as friends and enjoy the day all together. But Elliot already had the intention of asking Olivia out to dinner sometime this week, so they could have that first proper date as a couple.

The twins were excited to be at the zoo today and to be spending the afternoon with Miss Benson. They had been ready to go ever since Elliot had mentioned the plans for today. Elizabeth was especially excited, she had been looking at the map of the zoo since this morning and planning out exactly what order they would see the animals. Elliot was sure that he hadn't seen the little girl quite so excited or willing to plan everything out like this, in a very long time. He also didn't know how well she would take the idea that they likely wouldn't do everything set out in her plan in the order she set it out. It would be a lesson on taking other people's perspectives and wishes into consideration. Elliot did enjoy seeing his little girl so excited for everyone to be together though.  
"Daddy where are they? When are they going to get here?" Elizabeth asked as they stood for a few minutes. She wasn't very good at being patient but Elliot already knew Olivia and the others weren't far away. Olivia had texted him just a few minutes ago telling him they were walking into the park now.  
"They'll be here soon, I know you won't have to wait much longer" Elliot explained and tried to encourage patience with his daughter. Just as he did, he spotted Olivia pushing a stroller and another woman walking up beside her. He remained quiet and just watched Elizabeth closely to see how long it would take her to notice as he was sure if she looked hard enough, she could spot Olivia.

Surely enough, a moment later Elizabeth just took off running towards where Olivia was walking. He moved to keep a safe eye on her whilst Dickie started to follow his sister. Elliot didn't need to follow them to know where they were going but he just wanted to see what Olivia could spot them before they got to her, he wanted to make sure everyone was ok. Just like he expected, the minute the twins were closer to Olivia, she stopped and accepted their hugs tightly. Elliot couldn't help to smile as he watched the interaction and the group continued to walk towards the entrance, towards him. He smiled at Olivia as she looked at him and he saw her smile softly back. He knew that this was one fo the best things they were going to get today, with everyone around the whole time. However, he hoped that maybe he could steal away a moment later when they could be alone and he could kiss her at least once.

* * *

Alex had seen the sweet interaction between Olivia and these unfamiliar young children. She had made sure to hold on to the stroller with Chloe in as Olivia had bent down to embrace these two young children running up to her. Olivia had made sure then to introduce the kids as Elizabeth and Richard Stabler, Elliot's children and she explained that Elizabeth was in her class this year. Richard was quite the polite young boy as he extended his hand to shake Alex's hand whilst Elizabeth just went straight in for a hug greeting and then greeting Chloe. But Chloe hadn't taken that well, she was in a fussy mood today and Alex knew the struggles that Olivia had just to get the little girl down for a nap. But it seemed the little girl had only woken grumpier after her nap than before she went down. Alex had thought Olivia was going to cancel the zoo but when Alex knew that Elliot was going to be there, she knew there was no way Olivia would cancel.

When the group had been approaching the entrance to the zoo, Alex had seen the smile on Olivia's face as she looked at a younger man who was standing a little further ahead. Alex had known from that moment, that the man had to be Elliot and sure enough, when they approached the man, Olivia introduced him and Elliot had reached out to shake her hand almost instantly. Elliot had then proceeded to pay the entrance fee for the whole group and collected a few maps for the group. The twins had one each as they were not going to share today and then Elliot had one, which Olivia had agreed to share with him. Finally, Alex grabbed one for herself as a momento of the day.

* * *

They were headed towards the sea lion enclosure as that was the first vote of where the group wanted to go. Elizabeth and Dickie were walking at the front of the group, arguing over exactly what they were going to see next, Olivia was pushing the stroller with Chloe inside with Alex and Elliot on either side of her, talking as a group. Alex couldn't help but wonder whether there was a slightly more personal discussion going on between Elliot and Olivia, to what they were weren't verbalising. She wouldn't mention her thoughts to the group though. Elliot seemed very interested in getting to know Alex though and she really appreciated all his questions and making an effort to talk to her. Alex was just as eager to get to know him too though as the man who was really trying to woo her best friend.

"So how long are you in town for Alex?" Elliot asked as the group took a seat by the sealions and both Elizabeth and Richard took a seat near Olivia to talk about the enclosure. Chloe was in a mood about wanting to get out of the stroller and Olivia was trying to re-direct her attention to the animals.  
"Um I'm not sure at this stage, really just however long she needs me to be here" Alex replied, she really didn't have much of a timeframe for this journey, she just wanted to be here for her friend. But she did expect to be here at least a couple of weeks at this stage.  
"It was really good that you were able to come out here at such short notice and I'm sure Olivia must really like having you here" Elliot replied as they watched Olivia and the children.  
"Thankfully I had leave stored up from work and I didn't really give her a choice in whether I was coming or not. She would only refuse if I offered to come and we both know she would never ask for help on her own for help" Alex explained, she was being careful not to expose too much information about Olivia here as she didn't know how they had really spoken about before.  
"I've noticed that, she isn't one to accept too many things from other people, she wouldn't even let me send the car to collect you guys today"  
"Its to do with her past, has she told you about that?" Alex asked.  
"No?" Elliot replied, he was definitely curious to what Alex might be referring to right now, what had happened in Olivia's past?

"Well it's not for me to say and I know she will tell you about it when she's ready or she feels like she can. But whilst I really don't know a lot about you at this stage, I know you mean a lot to her and frankly, I've not seen her quite as happy as she is when she sees or speaks about you. I've not seen her this happy in a very long time" Alex explained  
"She means a lot to me too, I've never known anyone like her" Elliot spoke honestly.  
"And I know that whatever is going on between you two is brand new, but look after her, she's not had it easy in a long time. But I trust you will treat her right and I want you know that if you don't…I will hunt you down" Alex threated, in a light hearted but serious kind of way. Elliot knew there was some seriousness to her words though and he had to admit he was glad that there was someone else who was so protective of Olivia, just like he felt he needed to be for her. However, the main difference here was, Olivia would clearly let Alex be protective of her, but she wouldn't let him do that.

_**A/N: Firstly I apologise for the delay in updating this story. I'm currently working full time in a different position and preparing to move overseas. I wasn't sure I was going to get this chapter up till the end of this week with how busy things are. But due to the day off work due to fire risk, I had extra time to write. There aren't any fires near me but we're still on high alert with our Catastrophic Fire Warning today with the high heat and winds, things can change at any moment. I don't live near bush though so should be fine.**_

_**Anyway, I hope you enjoyed this chapter, I don't know when I'll get the next one up but it may be a week or so, just know that I'm writing when I can. Please let me know what you thought of this chapter by leaving a review,  
Until next time ;)**_


	23. Chapter 23

**Chapter 23**

The afternoon spent at the zoo was lovely, Elizabeth was practically glued to Olivia's hip near every exhibit they looked at and she tried several times to interact with Chloe, but with the mood Chloe was in today, the little girl simply wasn't reciprocating. Olivia had apologised numerous times to Elizabeth about Chloe and appreciated how friendly Elizabeth was trying to be. But Olivia still couldn't quite help feeling embarrassed by her daughter's actions. Especially when just a few weeks ago, Chloe had been absolutely fascinated by Elizabeth. Olivia had been glad to see Elliot and Alex talking throughout the afternoon though, she wanted her best friend to get along with Elliot and get to know him like she was. This had meant though that Olivia didn't really get much chance to talk with Elliot throughout their time together and she kind of missed that. But that had helped them remain friendly despite their relationship change and this being the first time that they had been with everyone since they went from friends to something more. She also had to admit that she really enjoyed being out altogether though and hoped that next time they did something like this, Chloe would be in a better mood.

At the end of the day, Chloe was 19 months old and Olivia had read that this was the time that children really started to show the whole range of emotions that people go through. Olivia knew that this was going to be the time that was likely the hardest to handle as Chloe could change in a blink of an eye. Olivia hadn't seen too many of the crazy emotions from Chloe recently, but she knew they were coming, and Olivia honestly wasn't sure if she was truly ready for this or not.

* * *

"Hey you" Elliot spoke up as he appeared next to Olivia, whilst they walked towards the park after the zoo. Chloe was out of the stroller, walking slowing with Alex after much of a debate on whether they would let her out of the stroller or not. Olivia had decided it was best not to fight the little girl any longer and just let her out. So Olivia was walking slightly slower behind the group, with the stroller and watching Chloe with Alex and the twins. Chloe definitely seemed a bit happier out of the stroller and excited to be heading to the park. This park had a large playground and Olivia was desperate to let her little one use up all her energy off before they worked out what was happening for dinner and head home.  
"Hey" Olivia smiled, gad that it was just the two of them for this moment.  
"I feel like everyone else has had your attention today but me, so I'm going to steal this moment" Elliot remarked.  
"Well I think you were the one who got the most of my attention last night compared to anyone else…But I think you stealing this moment is perfect" Olivia teased Elliot in return and he just smiled, last night was a great night and one for the memory books to him.

"I suppose that's true and I have to share you today, but that doesn't mean I actually want to though" Elliot remarked as he made a slight reach for her hand.  
"If you do that then I'm not going to be able to control the stroller It's kind of two hand job" Olivia remarked, having noticed Elliot's movement for her hand in her peripheral vision. As much as she wanted to hold his hand right now, the stroller wouldn't be right with only one hand controlling it.  
"How about I change that? I happen to have a particular skill pushing strollers single-handedly. So why don't I push it and then you hold my hand?" Elliot tried to compromise to which Olivia couldn't say no. If Elliot really wanted to push the stroller just so he could hold her hand then she wasn't going to stop him. Sure enough, as they continued to walk on, following the group, Elliot managed to successfully push the stroller in one hand and hold Olivia's hand in his other hand whilst talking with Olivia herself.

* * *

The afternoon seemed to pass by quicker than anyone was expecting, especially with how well everyone was getting on. Olivia had followed Chloe closely around the playground, pushing on the swings for a long time with how much the little girl loved the swings. Elliot had played with Alex and the twins in a game of hide and seek for a while but when things started to tire down from that, she made his way back to where Olivia and Chloe were. Alex still managed to entertain the twins further and she was surprisingly good with children, Elliot was really impressed by this. But Olivia wasn't surprised at all, she knew how good Alex was with Chloe and had seen her with other children too in the past. Olivia knew when the time came, Alex would make a fantastic mother and Olivia was excited for that time. But when Chloe started to show key sings of being tired, Olivia knew it was going to be time to get the little girl home, have dinner and then likely get her into bed. She thanked Elliot for a wonderful afternoon and hugged both the children goodbye in the process before she, Alex and Chloe all left the park.

Elliot had offered her his car and yet again, she had refused. Even Alex had tried to accept the car as a ride home but Olivia turned it down and expressed that they could manage on the way home, Elliot needed the car with the twins more than she did. Elliot really didn't understand her hesitancy to take his car or any of his offers to do things for her. He wanted to do this for her because he wanted to do things for her and he cared for her, but she refused every single time. Elliot couldn't help to wonder whether this was what things were going to be like between them, was she going to reject his chivalry or offers every time he wanted to assist her? If that really was the case, then he wasn't sure how he would could with that in this relationship, as he felt like he had to do things for others to be happy.

Elliot wanted to make Olivia happy, he wanted to be the one that would bring that beautiful smile of hers to her face and he felt the way that he could do that was through doing things for her. But she continued to refuse his attempts each and every time he offered. Things were still so new with them, maybe it was that Olivia was so fiercely independent that she didn't like it when other people did things for her and Elliot would come to accept that. But maybe there was something with this that was simply because things between them were so new and it would change over time. Elliot really couldn't be sure what was going on but he was prepared to find out.

* * *

"Alright, I have to admit it. When you and Elliot were together today, I wouldn't have known you were an item if you'd not told me beforehand" Alex remarked as she sat on the lounge in Olivia's living room with a glass of wine. Olivia was sitting next to her with a glass as well.  
"Really?" Olivia asked, she hadn't known Alex was watching so closely when they were out. She figured that Alex would be but she hadn't really noticed it.  
"Yeah, I...I would have thought you were friends or something but wouldn't think you were anything more than that. It wasn't like you two were acting like a couple would, you were acting like friends. But he is definitely into you" Alex remarked, thinking back to the conversation she'd had earlier today with Elliot and the times she'd watched Elliot and Olivia together.  
"Oh dear, what did you say to him?" Olivia asked, she knew from that remark that Alex must have had a pretty serious conversation with Elliot and was scared by what she said.  
"I just...asked him a few things"  
"Are you trying to scare him off?" Olivia teased, she knew her friend would never do that and was simply being protective but Olivia had her concerns about what Alex had talked to Elliot about.  
"No, I'm being your protective best friend. I just want to make sure he's in this for the long term and not just wanted some kind of a fling as I don't want your heart broken" Alex explained.  
"Well thank you but Elliot's not like that. He's...there is something just really special about him"  
"But you've not told him about Brian? Or the past?"  
"He doesn't need to know, no one needs to know that. I've moved on from that time and I intend to keep things that way" Olivia explained.

"Olivia, if you want Elliot around for a long time then when you're comfortable you need to tell him about that. Talking with Elliot today, I can tell you that he cares about you greatly and I'm more than sure he would do anything to protect you and Chloe"  
"I just...Brian is a big part of past, one that holds so many bad memories. I don't want to uncover those again when I can't be sure that what I have with Elliot is going to work out. It took me a really long time to be able to put all of that past away in a box and I don't want to bring it out again if I don't have to. I want whatever I have growing with Elliot to be a fresh start" Olivia tried to explain. She wanted her friend to see that there really was a specific reason why she had yet to tell Elliot about her previous relationship with Brian. Olivia felt really strongly for Elliot and she wanted to be happy with him, she couldn't see things working out if she brought up Brian or even mentioned everthing that was her past.  
"But Brian is Chloe's father" Alex stated.  
"Don't you think I know that? He doesn't though and as far as I'm concerned, Chloe's father is dead. I never want her to know him nad I never want that man near Chloe" Olivia defended.  
"Elliot may ask though and then what are you going to tell him?"  
"If Elliot asks, I will tell him. Things are just so new between us I don't want to risk ruining it. I want things to be different with Elliot than they were with Brian. I want things to last between us and I can't see that happening if I mention Brian because...well...you know"  
"You really don't think if things get serious between Elliot and you that you should tell him? It's easier if you tell him rather than him finding out elsewhere" Alex explained and Olivia knew she was right but it was such a touchy subject she didn't know what to do.  
"I honestly intend to tell Elliot, I know that a long term relationship can't have secrets. But I just feel like everything between us is so new, we literally took that step forward yesterday. I will tell Elliot about Brian and the past and everything when I'm ready. Please don't pressure me to do it beforehand"  
"Just make sure you do. I can't see from the way that Elliot is around you, he's in this for the long run and he'll love you regardless, he just needs to know" Alex explained as Olivia took the opportunity to pour herself another glass of wine and hoped to change the subject. She really cared for Elliot, that was clear as anything and she could see herself falling in love with him in time. She could really see herself being happy with Elliot and she could see him being the ideal father figure for Chloe. She knew she would talk to Elliot about her past in time, but that time wasn't right now.

* * *

Elliot managed to get the twins home from the park with dinner organised and in bed before ti was even their bed time. They had a huge afternoon and both were exhausted from it all so went to bed without any issues. Elizabeth was feeling nervous about the return to school tomorrow but Elliot promised that he would walk in with her. He also wanted to see Olivia there in the process. He knew that due to the setting, they would have to remain professional and he couldn't kiss her like he may have wanted to. But he felt comfortable with the idea of just seeing her and knowing that she was at school again. If the twins and Olivia were all back at school then things really were starting to get back to normal. He wanted things to be back to normal in a way, but he also liked the changes that had happened too and the fact that he and Olivia had started a relationship. Whilst he hated that the attack by Dani had happened but it had really given him the kick in the backside that he needed to confess to Olivia how he felt about her. If he hadn't done that then he wouldn't be here right now thinking about her and the way things had changed in one weekend. But they had changed for the better and Elliot couldn't be happier about it.

Elliot had to admit his conversation with Olivia's friend today was rather strange though. Especially when Alex had asked if Olivia had told him anything about her past, was there really that much to tell? As far as he was aware that wasn't the case. He knew there were things about her that she hadn't told him about, just like there were things he hadn't told her. But they were going to get to those things in the future, they were just taking things slowly now. He was excited to get to know her more though and hoped that they were building something that would turn out to be truly magical.

_**A/N: So I wasn't sure whether i would get this chapter up or not this week but i seemingly couldn't stop editing last night and knew i had to publish today. I hope you enjoyed the chapter. It was kind of a filler but an important conversation about Brian. Let me know what you thought with a review! Until Next Time ;)**_


	24. Detective Amaro

**Chapter 24 : Detective Amaro**

Monday mornings usually brought the busyness of early morning daycare drop off and then school in the Benson household. It usually meant Olivia had to be up before 6am, if Chloe didn't wake earlier than that, to get organised for the day before Chloe woke. Then Olivia would have to run around and get Chloe organised. However, this Monday morning was a little bit different. Olivia wasn't going to school today and Chloe wasn't going to daycare like usual. Olivia had received a call yesterday evening from Detective Amaro, asking her to come down to the precinct to discuss the case further as apparently there was new information that needed to be discussed in person. So, Olivia was going to head down to the precinct this morning and Alex would look after Chloe. Olivia had mentioned she might head into school this afternoon but the school had booked a casual teacher to cover her class for the whole day so Olivia didn't desperately need to head in. She would make the decision after her meeting on whether she would go or not. Olivia had been off school at the end of last week after the attack but hopefully one more day wouldn't hurt.

Olivia woke up when Chloe woke for the day and they spent time just relaxing in her bedroom rather than heading out to the living room to make sure they didn't wake Alex. Olivia loved spending time like this with just her little girl, reading and playing together. Olivia couldn't believe that it was only going to be a matter of months till Chloe was 2 years old. Olivia really didn't know whether this time had gone. It was almost the middle of October now and it really seemed like only yesterday that Chloe was about to be 1. There was nothing Olivia loved more than being a mother and she placed Chloe over everything else in her life. She knew that there were things her daughter may not have in her life which other children do, due to situations that had happened. But there were things that Olivia was prepared to do about that.  
"No sool?" Chloe asked as she looked up at her mother.  
"Nope, I'm not going to school today and neither are you. I have to go to a big meeting though so you're going to hang out with Aunty Alex today" Olivia replied, explaining the day to her little girl.  
"Momma stay" Chloe tried to protest which took Olivia a little by surprise. Chloe had never been a particularly clingy baby or suffer from separation anxiety but now Chloe seemed to not want Olivia go.  
"I can't sweetheart. I have to go and see a nice policeman for a while. But you'll be with Aunty Alex and you'll have a great day. How about we go see if she's awake now?" Olivia asked, trying to redirect her little girl's attention, she didn't want to deal with the tears right now.

"Al asdasdj see mony?" Chloe asked, she was still learning how to string words together and sometimes Olivia had to decode her baby babble with what it was she might be asking.  
"No honey, we can't go see the monkeys again today" Olivia replied as they walked through the living room to Alex's bedroom.  
"I wan money!" Chloe tried to protest.  
"We saw the monkeys yesterday but if you're really good for Aunty Alex today, we might get to see the ducks this afternoon" Olivia convinced the little girl.  
"Duckie!" Chloe squealed in excitement right before Alex opened the bedroom door and surprised both of them, clearly, she was already awake.

* * *

Elliot followed Elizabeth through the big school gates. He'd cleared his morning schedule from the meetings and other plans as he wanted to make sure he could take the twins to school. Today was their first day back since the attack and he wanted to make sure that they were ok. It would also be Olivia's first day back since the attack and he wanted to check on her as well. In fact, he had even done a typical 'teacher's pet' style move and brought her an apple, just to put that beautiful smile of hers on her face. The last time he saw her in the classroom, they were in such a different place to what they were now. Especially after this past weekend. However, he felt proud of the way things had changed and he felt excited for the future and everything which lay ahead for them. Elliot had to admit that seeing Olivia in a professional position like the classroom would be a challenge in this new relationship, when he knew how much he wanted to kiss her. Thankfully this morning, they would have the likely welcome distraction of Elizabeth. But what they weren't expecting, was for Olivia not actually to be in the classroom when they arrived.

"Good morning" A short, blonde-haired woman greeted the pair as Elizabeth walked to the doorway.  
"Where's Miss Benson?" Elizabeth asked, completely ignoring the greeting from this unfamiliar woman.  
"Elizabeth, that's not how we respond when someone says hello" Elliot tried to reprimand his daughter. He wasn't big on etiquette as such, but he always made sure that his children were raised with manners and Elizabeth wasn't exactly being nice right now. He was surprised that Olivia wasn't here, he thought that she was coming back to school today as well. But he wouldn't let his daughter be rude towards another teacher like this, all because her favourite teacher wasn't here.  
"I'm sorry, good morning…where is Miss Benson?" Elizabeth tried again as the teacher came over to her but Miss Anderson beat her to it.

"Miss Benson had to do some really important things this morning, she told me she might be in this afternoon but for now, this is Mrs Davies and she's going to be teaching us today" Miss Anderson explained to Elizabeth.  
"It's so lovely to meet you" Mrs Davies greeted Elizabeth, from over near the board.  
"Now, when I spoke with Miss Benson this morning, she told me that today might be a little bit scary for you and she wanted to be here to help. But if you are feeling scared or sad at all today, you come and tell me ok and I'll help you through it" Miss Anderson said to which Elliot smiled, thinking of how even though she wasn't here today, Olivia had thought of everything. She always did.

Elliot knew that Elizabeth would be ok and he knew that there were going to be people looking out for her at school and he would be back to pick her up this afternoon.  
"Alright sweetie, I have to go now, do you think you'll be ok? I will be here to pick you up this afternoon and you can tell me all about your day on the way to dance?" Elliot asked as he bent down by the door.  
"Ok, bye daddy" Elizabeth ran over to give her father a hug goodbye and he pressed a kiss on the top of her head before leaving her to help Miss Anderson with preparing for the day.

* * *

Detective Amaro was waiting for Olivia as she walked into the precinct, he greeted her before she even made it up to the desk sergeant and the pair made their way back through the doors, heading towards one of the interview rooms where they could talk. Olivia wasn't entirely sure why she was even here right now, as she had thought the case was finalised now Dani was in custody and they had evidence to support the attack. But when Detective Amaro had called yesterday, she knew clearly something was up.  
"So I know you're wondering why we called you in here?" Detective Amaro started as they entered the conference room and Olivia took a seat near the table.  
"You could say that, I thought you had everything you would need and the charges were pretty clear?" Olivia queried.  
"Well they were…until they weren't. Dani is going to fight the charges against her, claiming mental insanity as her defence to why she hit you and threatened the children of Mr Stabler" Detective Amaro explained and Olivia had to admit, she was a little confused as to why Dani was going to do all of this.  
"So, what does that mean moving forward?" Olivia asked.  
"Well firstly, she wants to talk to you. We have her in custody up north and she's requesting to speak with you, to explain everything. But with her fighting the charges, there is now a high change that it will go to court rather than settling out of court" Detective Amaro continued to explain. Dani was not only fighting the charges against her now, but she wanted to talk with Olivia? Olivia wanted nothing to do with her and she really didn't want to go.  
"If I go and see her, could we avoid court?" Olivia asked, she really didn't want to go through a whole court situation if she could help it. She'd been there once before with Brian and that had been hard enough.

"Possibly, it would depend on what she really has to say and if there can be some kind of agreement made. We have sent our ADA to meet with her and her lawyer to discuss the charges, and see if we can make a deal. However Dani is saying that she won't discuss anything with that until she's met with you and only you" Detective Amaro explained and Olivia didn't know what to do. She knew that to avoid going to court, she would have to go and visit Dani. Olivia wanted to do anything to avoid going to court, to keep Elliot's children away from that whole situation, so she had to go and see Dani.  
"I guess I'll have to go and see her then. Can we do it today?" Olivia asked, she was desperate to get it over and done as soon as possible.  
"Unfortunately, no. We have to arrange your visit with the prison and it can't be done today, however I'm fairly confident we can get you in tomorrow if you're sure you want to go"  
"Yes, lets do that…the sooner I can get this over with the better. There have been too many people hurt in all of this and I just want it done with"  
"Alright, I will arrange for you to meet with Dani at the prison hopefully tomorrow or later this week. I'll call you again with the details when I have done that and they have been confirmed. If there is some kind of deal that can be made with Dani, after seeing you, then this case won't go to court" Detective Amaro explained to which Olivia thanked him for the assistance before Detective Amaro escorted her out. There were a few steps which needed to be made next and Olivia now had to decide whether she would tell Elliot about all of this or not. She already knew that Elliot would be wondering where she was if he'd taken the twins to school this morning like he'd intended to. She had to admit, she was surprised she'd not heard from him yet.

Olivia hated the fact that so much of this was starting to relate to her past, she wanted to avoid court as much as she could because of court. But if she explained that to Elliot, she would have to mention her past and that was a whole conversation. There was so much of that which she knew that Elliot would judge her about, she wouldn't want to be with her when he truly knew how much she had been through and how Chloe had come into the world. She had fled to New York for a fresh start and she could see that with Elliot, she wanted to see where things with him were going to go but she hoped that she could keep him in the dark about her past for now. She knew that Elliot would judge her with her relationship with Brian and he could never love a damaged woman like her. Despite how strong Olivia may feel she is, she was a damaged woman and she knew the minute she told Elliot about her past, he would walk away. They had only been together for a couple of days and they were taking things slowly, but something just felt different with Elliot. Olivia hated the thought that she would lose Elliot over this. So maybe she didn't have to tell him.

_**A/N: Dani wants to meet Olivia in prison? Is Olivia not going to tell Elliot about this? Or will she decide that he does need to know? Hmm well I guess you'll have to wait and see in the next chapter. Let me know what you thought about this chapter in the reviews! I love reading what you thought and where you think the story will go next. Thanks for reading and caring about my writing.  
Until Next Time :D**_


	25. Catching You Up

**Chapter 25: Catching You Up**

Elliot walked out of the board room after a long morning of meetings. He was carrying a large pile of papers that needed his reviewing for a business partnership for his New York hotel. He also had to review the designs for the Florida hotel again so that he could fly out the week after next and attend the ground breaking for the building of the hotel. There were so many things on his plate today and yet he couldn't get Olivia off his mind. He'd not heard from her at all today and he'd been really surprised she wasn't in the classroom when he'd dropped Elizabeth off. He'd been meaning to try texting or calling her earlier today but then things got a little bit crazy. He wanted to know that she was ok.

Luckily, as he got back to his office, he found there was a message from Olivia asking him to call her, as she'd called and he was in the meeting. Elliot had turned his mobile off whilst he was in the meetings this morning and so Olivia would have called his assistant.  
"Hello?" Olivia greeted as she answered the call.  
"Hi beautiful, I'm sorry I missed your call earlier. I also missed you at school this morning, is everything ok?" Elliot asked, feeling like he was firing a million questions at Olivia right now.  
"Oh hi, you're not calling from your mobile? I'm fine. I just couldn't be at school this morning as I had to meet with Detective Amaro again. I hope Lizzie made it alright? I called Clara and asked her to look out for Elizabeth today as I know it will be hard" Olivia explained, smiling when she realised it was Elliot on the phone.  
"Yes sorry, this is my desk phone and yeah there were a few initial bumps at school this morning but she was fine. You had a meeting with Detective Amaro though? Is everything ok?" Elliot asked, suddenly feeling a little concerned that something more was going on with her. Elliot knew that if Olivia was having to meet with the police again then things couldn't be good.

"Actually…No I don't think it is. Dani is fighting our charges" Olivia stated.  
"What?" Elliot was confused, how could Dani be fighting the charges when she was the one who did it and there is video.  
"It's a really long story but basically she's fighting the charges on terms of mental incompetence"  
"Have you got time for lunch? Or are you heading home or to school now?" Elliot asked, they needed to discuss this further but not over the phone.  
"I…I don't think I'm going to make it to school today but yes, I've got time for lunch"  
"Where are you right now? I'll come and pick you up"  
"Yo-you don't have to do that, I'll meet you wherever we go" Olivia declined, Elliot didn't want to fight her today on that, he just wanted to see her. They agreed to a diner to meet at and then ended the phone call, Elliot was glad Olivia was going to meet him for lunch, he wanted to know what had changed in the case, to require her to meet with Detective Amaro.

* * *

Olivia walked into the diner, it had been a rather short trip from the precinct to the diner but she was almost certain Elliot would be waiting for her. There was something about the way he always wanted to pick her up or give her lifts to places or even do things for her, which was new for Olivia. It was something that would take some getting used to, as Olivia had never been with a man that was like this before. Brian had been very chivalrous when they first started dating, but that really hadn't lasted very long, and Olivia couldn't help but wonder whether things were going to be the same with Elliot. She also didn't want to develop this dependency on Elliot, she was a strong independent woman living in a huge city raising her daughter, she didn't want that to change in this relationship with Elliot. Olivia knew that relationships take work though and she knew it would be a bit of give and take, so she couldn't just keep rejecting him or they wouldn't work out.

Sure enough, Elliot stood up the moment Olivia walked into the diner, so she could find him. He smiled softly at her as she walked over and Elliot remained standing till Olivia was seated. The waitress came over shortly after and took their meal orders. Olivia wasn't feeling overly hungry and so she simply went with chicken and chips whilst Elliot ordered a burger.  
"So, how was your morning?" Olivia asked once the waitress had finished taking the orders and left.  
"Busy, I hardly had a moment to myself from the time I walked in after school drop off, right till I called you back" Elliot explained, he'd had a real busy morning that was for sure but Mondays were often super busy.  
"Wow, business must be good then?" Olivia enquired and Elliot had to agree to that but he really didn't want to talk business, he wanted to talk about Olivia and about the case.  
"It is, but I really don't want to talk about business, I want to talk about you and the this case. What is the story now? What did Detective Amaro have to say?' Elliot asked, diverting the conversation to something else.  
"Jumping right to it then shall we…Basically Dani is apparently trying to fight the charges we have on the attack, by claiming she is mentally incompetent. She also wanted to talk with me, apparently, she has something she really wants to say" Olivia tried to explain.  
"What? There is a video of her screaming at you and Richard crying in her arms. The same video shows when you go to help my boy, she just unleashes and who knows what else was done outside of the video recording" Elliot said, he was not going to let this whole thing go further than it needed to. Dani had attacked Olivia and his kids, and he would make sure she got the consequences that she deserved for her actions.

"Apparently there were numerous mental issues leading up to that point and there is evidence to support her claims with that. So, she's fighting the charges because of that. Detective Amaro says that we could end up taking this to court if an agreement cant be met outside of court and I really don't want that. I want Dani to get the consequences she deserves but not in court like this if I can help it. So, I'm going to go, talk to her and hear whatever it is that she wants to say…to work out what the next step in all this is" Olivia explained and Elliot was almost speechless. He didn't want Olivia going anywhere near that woman. Right now, he wanted to reach out and hold Olivia's hand to his, to provide some sense of comfort for her in this distressing situation. But they were in a public place right now and there were people around so he couldn't be sure whether this was really the right time or not. He didn't want to further upset Olivia.  
"Is that really wise? Why don't we just take this to court and see what happens? I'll pay all the fees and get a lawyer if we have to. I'm not sure it's a good idea for you to go and see Dani" Elliot expressed his concerns.

"She's in prison, she can't hurt me again and she's willing to compromise or work on a deal so we can stay out of court. If we go to court, we're only going to drag this out longer than needed and not to mention it is going to stress your kids out more" Olivia explained, she'd definitely didn't want to drag the kids through court proceedings and testimonies and everything.  
"Believe me, I want this to be over as much as you do but I really don't feel comfortable with you going to see Dani. The last time you two were in the same place, she hurt you and I can't bear the thought of that happening again. I could come with you? And talk to her together?" Elliot suggested. Olivia appreciated his concern for her with contacting Dani but he really didn't need to come with her.  
"She wants to talk alone, it's the only way that we might be able to get her to cooperate. So, I need to do this, it'll be better for everyone if I go and talk to her and I do it alone. Detective Amaro is going to call me when there is a time and a day but he's pretty confident he can get it tomorrow. It does mean I'll have to take another day off work though" Olivia explained and Elliot wanted to say he understood but he didn't. He didn't agree with her going to see Dani. He knew that she was doing this to protect him and his children, which he was grateful for but he hoped she'd be safe. He trusted Olivia but he didn't trust Dani and he didn't like the sound of Olivia meeting with her privately.

"Will you at least let me escort you there and back again? Please? I'll wait in the car the entire time you're there"  
"Alright, I suppose we can do that" Olivia compromised, she knew Elliot wouldn't stop until she made some kind of compromise. She also knew that he was simply trying to look out for her and she really appreciated that. She could let him come in the car to the prison and take her home again. It might be nice to have the additional company like this – especially after she'd spoken with Dani.

* * *

Elizabeth Stabler had to admit that she'd honestly had a great day at school, even with Miss Benson not here at all. They had done an art lesson after lunch, for the remainder of the school day and Elizabeth's favourite subject was art so she'd loved this activity. Miss Anderson had been there when Elizabeth was feeling a little bit strange with this new teacher, but things had gone much better after recess when Elizabeth felt settled for the day. Now, she was going to get to go to dance lessons this afternoon and with her daddy especially. They would go to Basketball first for Dickie but then they would go to Dani and Elizabeth felt excited for that. She stood near the teachers at afternoon pick up time, and scanned the playground for her father. The minute she laid eyes on him Elizabeth took off across the playground, excited that he had indeed stuck to his word and he was here to get her.

"Daddy!" Elizabeth cried out.  
"Hey princess! Did you have a good day?" Elliot asked as he embraced the little girl.  
"Yeah, we got to do art after lunch and I love art" Elizabeth explained as she pulled away from her father again.  
"I know you do, and you're really good at it too" Elliot complimented.  
"But Miss Benson never came to school, so we had the other teacher all day. She isn't as nice as Miss Benson but Miss Anderson told me Miss Benson is coming again tomorrow" Elizabeth explained as they waited for Dickie to join them. They had spotted him across the playground, talking with one of his other friends but Elliot knew the little boy had spotted them also and would be over shortly.  
"Well, I'm glad that you had such a good day. I've got a surprise for you" Elliot stated to which Elizabeth had to admit that she was intrigued to what her father had brought her.  
"What is it?" Elizabeth asked  
"I can't tell you because it's a surprise, it's in the car though and when Dickie comes, we can go see what it is. I think you'll like it though"  
"I want to see it now!" Elizabeth protested and Elliot just shook his head, the little girl had no patience.  
"We need to wait for your brother before we can go, why don't you go and get him if you want to leave sooner" Elliot requested, and Elizabeth just took off to get her brother. The sooner he was over, the sooner they could get to the car and she'd know what the surprise was.

Elliot walked to where the car was waiting for them, with the twins. He had a special surprise waiting inside for them and it was one that he knew they were going to love, especially Elizabeth. The twins had been trying to guess what the surprise may have been the whole walk to the car, but they had not actually guessed it yet. Elliot knew this was something they were unlikely to get.  
"Now, my surprise is waiting for you inside this car and Elizabeth, since you waited so patiently for your brother, why don't you climb in first" Elliot said as he handed their school bags to the driver and held the back door of the car open. Elizabeth moved over and climbed inside finding, to her complete surprise, the woman she had missed all day.  
"MISS BENSON" Elizabeth squealed before cuddling in close to Olivia's side. Shortly after, Richard did the exact same thing and whilst there had to be a bit of re-shuffling, both twins ended up cuddled up to Olivia in the back of the car. Elliot on the other hand had been made to sit in the front seat next to the driver, a position he very rarely took. But this surprise for his kids had been worth being made to sit up the front and he was glad that he and Olivia had pulled it off.

_**A/N: So Olivia's going to meet with Dani? I wonder how that's going to go. You'll find out in the next chapter :) Also, Elliot really must feel strongly for Olivia if he's prepared to give up a day at work to go with her. I wonder how that's going to go? Is he being too protective or is he simply trying to show love for those he cares about. Who knows.**_

_**I wanted to get a chapter up for you quickly as I'm moving countries today and so it may be a while till I manage to get another chapter up for you all but i'm writing like crazy. So it's just the editing i need to do. Let me know what you thought of this chapter in a review. I'll try update again sooner rather than later. Until Next Time ;)**_


	26. Us

**Chapter 26: Us **

The usual Monday afternoon routine had actually gone way better than usual, considering they had an extra guest with them today. Olivia had been really touched that the twins were so excited to see her there this afternoon and she was glad she'd agreed to this with Elliot. Olivia knew that Chloe was perfectly fine with Alex and she had called her friend just to check if everything was ok for her to stay out just a little bit longer than she had originally said. It had been Elliot's idea for Olivia to come with him and surprise the twins at the afternoon pick up. They would simply disguise it as checking in on Elizabeth, which wasn't entirely a lie as she did want to see how the little girl's day went. Of course, Elizabeth was ecstatic to see Olivia in the back of the car which touched Olivia and she listened closely as both the twins took turns telling her all about their day.

Olivia directed the driver to her favourite bakery, where they could all get a snack before going to basketball and then dance. Elliot had barely managed to get a word in when the kids had been around but he was glad to see them so excited. Not to mention that he'd had plenty of time to talk with her when they had lunch, so it was the kids turns now. Olivia could see that there were times Elliot wanted to speak up this afternoon when she was with them, but he had simply let the focus be on the twins and she found that really special. But the time to head home came around sooner than anyone had expected, and Olivia refused to let Elliot have the driver take them all to her place first on the journey home from dance. Instead, she insisted that she would take the subway just fine. Elliot wouldn't fight her on this again this time, but he made a mental note that he was going to question her straight up about this and why she wouldn't let him take her home and make sure she got their safely with his own eyes.

* * *

Elliot was honestly surprised that he was able to get the twins in bed at their actual bedtime that night. They had been so excited from seeing Olivia and having her with them all afternoon. Elliot was glad that Olivia had agreed to come with them as well, but he knew it meant the world to Elizabeth. Olivia hadn't hesitated in agreeing to come though, and Elliot really enjoyed seeing her connection with Elizabeth up close and personal. Elizabeth had done all her homework with Olivia, which for once hadn't actually been set by herself for that week. Richard also got his homework done with Olivia when Elizabeth was at dance. This meant when they got home, it was the perfect time for dinner and then baths and bed.

"Daddy" Elizabeth spoke up as Elliot was tucking her in for the night.  
"Yes honey?" Elliot replied, wondering what type of question the little girl was going to ask.  
"Are you and Miss Benson friends?"  
"Of course honey, why do you ask that?"  
"Well…we've never been to things with my other teachers before, but we've seen Miss Benson lots" Elizabeth explained.  
"Don't you like spending time with Miss Benson? I thought you liked it when we went to the zoo with her yesterday?" Elliot enquired, he didn't know where this was all coming from right now.  
"I did…I really like seeing Miss Benson heaps. But you only spend lots of time with your friends" Elizabeth continued to explain and the girl had a point but Elliot just wasn't sure how he would explain everything and avoid the topic of relationships.  
"Well yes sweetheart, Miss Benson and I are friends and I really like spending time with her too. Would you be ok if we got to spend more time with her?'  
"And Chloe?"  
"Of course!"  
"I think Chloe's really cute and she's lucky to have a mommy like Miss Benson. I think she really looks like Miss Benson would if Miss Benson was a baby" Elizabeth concluded and Elliot just laughed with the little girl's explanation of things. He had to agree though Chloe really did look like Olivia and she was a very cute little girl.  
"I agree. I also think we are going to be seeing more of them outside of school now to. But it's time for you to go to bed night as we've got a big day again tomorrow"  
"Daddy your silly…I'm in bed"  
"Well it's time to go to sleep" Elliot corrected himself as the little girl snuggled down in her bed and Elliot tucked the covers in tight around her. He placed a kiss on her forehead and made his way out of the bedroom, leaving the door slightly ajar, just how Lizzie liked it.

* * *

The conversation with Elizabeth just now had really sparked a thought process for Elliot now though, because the little girl had a point. They had spent a bit of time with Olivia and Chloe recently, more time than he had spent with any of her other teachers in the previous years but he hadn't got to know her other teachers like he was getting to know Olivia. There was also something distinctly different about Olivia to any of the other teacher's that the twins had and he'd known about. However, this change in relationship status between him and Olivia would eventually mean changes for the children. He didn't exactly know how the twins were going to take their father being romantically involved with someone else? What about Chloe? Elliot knew she was only little but he didn't know what the true story of her father was or how she would take to being around Elliot more.

There was suddenly so much more to this relationship than maybe they had even thought about, especially moving forward. It was making Elliot feel like he suddenly had numerous other things to talk about with Olivia. It was a good thing that there was going to be plenty of time now tomorrow with it just being him and Olivia where they could possibly discuss this further. Whatever happened, it didn't change the way he felt about her or his want to pursue a relationship together In fact, he could see it all working out really well for the children, but he just wasn't sure if there were going to be issues getting to that point first.

* * *

Elliot sent the car for Olivia after the morning school drop off, and he told the driver to come back to the hotel to pick him up before they set off as he wanted to collect a few things from his penthouse office. Elliot also knew that if he sent the car for Olivia first, she wouldn't be able to refuse it and then they could leave from the hotel. He'd called last night to ensure she got home safely and told her that he was sending the car in the morning. Of course, Olivia had agreed to this and thanked him for it, which took him a little by surprise.

When the car pulled up again outside the hotel, Elliot climbed into the back and he could instantly sense something was up with Olivia. He could tell she wasn't completely right and just by looking at her he could see that she was nervous. After seeing this, Elliot was glad that he had pushed so hard to come with her today and that he could be here for her both before and after she'd spoken with Dani. He knew that she would never let him come in with her and he wouldn't try to, but if she looked uneasy like this now, who knew what she was going to be like afterwards.

* * *

What Elliot didn't know, was that Olivia was feeling completely out of sorts today. She'd had several nightmares last night with flashbacks to Brian and she couldn't help to feel like this was a sign. She had honestly never been so glad that Elliot was going to be there today both before and after she spoke with Dani. But she could sense that Elliot could tell something else was going on with her today and she didn't know how to tell him. Elliot knew nothing about Brian and today was not the day that Olivia wanted to tell him about Brian. She wanted to tell Elliot and she knew she really should, but she didn't want to tell him just because of a horrible time like seeing Dani. However, she could tell from the way he was looking at her now, as they drove through the streets of New York, that he was worried about her. He didn't say anything though, he simply took her hand in his and gave it a soft squeeze. It was to let her know that he was here, and that he would be here if she waned to talk about anything.

"Thank you for coming with me" Olivia spoke up, figuring she needed to be the one to start a conversation rather than let Elliot continue to worry.  
"Of course, thank you for letting me come" Elliot replied. Olivia still felt a little surprised that this man had completely cleared his busy schedule for her today.  
"I just want today to go well and Dani to finally leave us alone"  
"Us? I like the sound of that" Elliot remarked, trying to lighten this mood which resulted in a small smile from Olivia.  
"Well it's true. I like what we've got started here, especially the way we all were these past couple of days and Dani could ruin that. I just want to get this over with and she can leave us alone" Olivia remarked, looking out the window briefly.  
"Hey, hey. Don't worry, she can't hurt _us_" Elliot tried to encourage, getting Olivia to look him straight in the eye but she still wished she could believe him.

_There are parts of me you don't know, parts which she could very easily use to ruin this if she wanted to_ Olivia thought. Dani had mentioned things about her past before, she could bring it up again and she could taunt Olivia with it. Olivia remained quiet though and focused on Elliot's hold on her hand, she really hoped that everything would indeed be ok.

* * *

Dani was actually excited for once, she had managed to get Olivia to come and visit her in prison by stating she wouldn't cooperate otherwise. Dani had a plan for the meeting, she was going to make Olivia think that everything between them was fine and that she was _really _sorry for what she had done. She would get Olivia to think that there was no point in pressing charges against her as Dani was so sorry, so then Dani would be let go and then she'd have her chance to be with Elliot. Dani really only had one intention with this whole thing, she knew Elizabeth and Richard were in desperate need of a mother figure and she knew Elliot needed her. So, if she could show that she was in fact a decent person and sorry for her actions that she had done in the hotel, Elliot would surely fall in love with her. Dani would simply be the perfect mother to Richard, she'd get Elliot to send Elizabeth away to boarding school and they'd never have to see that wicked Olivia Benson ever again.

The minute that Olivia had spoken to Dani for the first time, was the first mistake she'd made. Dani now knew her secrets, she'd made connections to people in Olivia's past and she knew the world that this seemingly perfect teacher came from was not so perfect. She would get Elliot and the twins to see that this was not a woman to be involved with. Dani was going to open their eyes to the manipulative bitch that Olivia was and when she did, Elliot would simply have to take her back. Dani knew that Elizabeth would surely be heartbroken not to see her precious _Miss Benson _again but boarding school would help her get over that. Dani smirked to herself as she was led into the meeting cells, Olivia would be here soon. Dani would get the world to see that whilst Olivia might have been the one to play the victim, she was manipulative and frankly the biggest liar Dani had ever met. Especially with this story that Dani had learnt about Chloe's father. Oh how Dani would enjoy spreading this information, there was no way that anyone could respect her when she had a man's kid and never told him or anyone outside of her friends or family about it. It's funny how the world makes things right when Dani needs it to. She was going to enjoy this!

_**A/N: Next chapter – Dani and Olivia talk, what are they going to say? Will they reach a compromise? How are they both going to react? You'll simply have to wait and see. **_

_**Until Next Time ;)**_


	27. Jail is a Funny Thing

_**A/N: So…buckle in because it's going to be a wild ride.**_

* * *

**Chapter 27 – Jail is a funny thing**

Elliot had escorted Olivia as far as he could once the car pulled up at the jail. He was so hesitant to let Olivia go in there alone but he knew that she needed to. They had barely spoken on the ride up here, it was only about an hour or so outside of New York but the pair had sat in silence almost the whole way. Elliot had held Olivia's hand in his the whole journey whilst she had been lost in a trance looking out the window. Elliot knew she was likely thinking about something and she would talk to him if she needed to, so he wasn't going to force it. He was glad that she was clearly showing the search for some comfort with him though and he was glad that he could come with her today. Now all he could do was wait till she was done and out again. He'd given her a soft kiss on the side of the head when she was at the entrance doors to the jail and told her that he'd be at the car when she was done. Olivia had just smiled in return, thanked him and told him she'd see him soon.

Elliot honestly didn't understand why they had to do this, he didn't understand why Dani was determined to see Olivia like this and why it all had to be done alone. He couldn't help but wonder whether there was more of an intention to this than simply 'wanting to talk'. He had wondered this last night and, on the drive, up this morning. Elliot was coming to see what Dani was clearly like, something he had been blinded to when he first hired her and had her working with his children after Kathy left. That was something that would never happen again.

* * *

The air was cold and a strong stale smell in it, the kind of smell which made Olivia question whether people in this place knew what personal hygiene was. But she had to reprimand herself over that thought as she didn't imagine there was too much choice on that in here. Olivia had only ever been to prison once before now. She had come to visit Brian once when he first got arrested for domestic abuse against her as she felt bad about it. She had hated the place then though and vowed to never go back. Yet, here she was again and making the same kind of vow once more. Things were different this time around though, she was here because she was trying to make a case easier for those she cared for, she wouldn't be here otherwise. The minute she'd left Elliot outside, she felt the wish to go back to him and htat wish had only continued as she was searched on her way into the prison and directed to the room where they would bring Dani. Olivia had thought the Assistant District Attorney, who was handling the case would be here with her, but she had yet to see whoever this actually was. _Just breathe, the sooner your in, the sooner you can get out and hopefully it'll all be done _Olivia reminded herself as she felt herself becoming rather uneasy about everything. She wanted this over as soon as possible and she knew she could get through this.

When Olivia entered the meeting room, she saw a guard standing by the door and Dani was sitting at the desk across the room. She felt a bit of relief that she wouldn't be entirely alone in here, she had a guard there now if Dani went for her.  
"Olivia! How nice for you to join me" Dani greeted in a smile, which made Olivia suspicious.  
"Well, you called for me" Olivia replied.  
"So, I have all the power, do I? If I call, you'll just come running? How empowering that is" Dani taunted.  
"No, you told the officers and the lawyers that you wouldn't talk unless you and I had a talk first. So here I am now" Olivia replied, keeping straight to the point. She wasn't here for niceties, she didn't really want to be here at all and she wanted to get out of here as soon as she could. She didn't want to do the small talk.  
"Getting right to the point then I see. Look, I called you here because I know that you don't actually want to go to court. I've heard all about your previous experiences in the court room and well I doubt you want to go through that again"  
"How do you know all this?"

"Haha, I have my sources. You are not the squeaky-clean princess that the world seems to think you are and I'm going to make sure that Elliot sees it. You thin you have him wrapped around your finger but I know you've not told him anything about your murky past" Dani continued to taunt.  
"You're delusional. If you brought me here to try and taunt me like this into believing that you knew everything about me and could ruin my life, then you're just delusional" Olivia remarked, she wasn't going to take this. She felt concerned by what Dani might know about her past but there was nothing there that she could twist even the smallest bit to cause too much of an issue.  
"Really? Tell me then, how does Brian feel about Chloe? Funny how he didn't know that he even had a daughter till recently. He was less than impressed that you stole a child from him and it makes me wonder, how you would feel if Chloe was taken from you" Dani taunted.  
"My daughter, is none of your business!" Olivia retaliated.  
"I think her father would disagree with you there as he'd been told that you miscarried the child…Funny how tables turn" Dani continued.

"What do you want?" Olivia asked, not liking this taunting but wanting to know the deeper meaning in it all.  
"For the charges towards me to be dropped! You drop the charges and I take all of this away. No court house, no taken child and well, we can all be happy" Dani replied.  
"You attacked me! You scared Elizabeth and Dani and you just want to get away with it like that? In what mindset is that remotely ok?" Olivia asked.  
"I was not mentally stable on that day, I had been fired from my hob with no warning and then Elliot wouldn't talk with me. Then finally I saw you with the twins, _my _twins and I just snapped. I'm going to get help but I really think these charges area bit of a stretch here. Do you really want to go through a long legal battle, which you likely won't win and I don't think a teacher's salary would afford a decent lawyer and there was no way that Mr Elliot Stabler would support you through the trial as just a teacher. His reputation and hotel would be tarnished and I doubt you would want that…for Elliot"  
"I'm leaving…this was a mistake"  
"You walk out that door and I guess we'll just see each other in court. But I don't think you'll be very happy with the result. Not to mention Brian will probably want to meet his daughter and you can't keep him away, he has paternal rights" Dani taunted again, Olivia knew she had to get out of here, she was going to lose it and she had to remain professional.  
"That man will _never_ get near my daughter and you are never getting away with the damage you've done. This was a mistake and I guess I'll see you in court" Olivia staged before standing up and walked towards the door again, where the guard let her go. This was the biggest mistake she'd made, thinking that by seeing Dani it would all work out.

* * *

Olivia had a hard time controlling her anger whilst she was talking to Dani but she hadn't lost it too much. However, when she left the room and was being escorted back out again, Olivia wanted to cry. She couldn't believe the things Dani had actually said and she was terrified now thinking Brian knew about Chloe. Dani was making threats about taking her little girl away and whilst Olivia knew she couldn't, deep down Olivia was terrified. Chloe was her absolute everything and she had never wanted Brian anywhere near her. Olivia didn't understand how Dani had contact with Brian or if these threats were even real but they certainly seemed to have some power to them. She wouldn't let Dani get away with it though, she wouldn't let her attack and the damage that woman had done, just fall away. She could overcome all the threats Dani was making to make sure that she got the consequences she deserved.

Olivia knew that she would have to tell Elliot about the meeting, she knew that he would want to know all about it and what exactly had been said. But there was just so much that Dani had said, which involved her past, especially the threats of Brian and the ones of Chloe being taken. Olivia didn't know how Dani knew all of this, but she was seriously concerned by how Dani was twisting everything and she didn't know how to tell Elliot. Olivia felt like this was all really intense and not something one should be sharing in the first couple of weeks of a relationship. She was still getting to know Elliot and getting to trust him, her past was huge and very intense so she couldn't exactly tell him if she didn't trust him. But on the other hand she felt safe whenever she was with Elliot and she knew that maybe this would be the situation where she was going to just have to tell him all.

* * *

Olivia smiled as she saw Elliot get out of the back of the car when she was walking over. The minute she was close enough he engulfed her in a tight hug. Olivia instantly felt a rush of relief fall over her and was glad to have Elliot here now with her. She couldn't imagine how she would handle getting back to the city without him if he'd listened when she said she didn't want him to come. Olivia kissed him softly before pulling apart and Elliot held the door as she got into the car. Olivia hadn't said a single word to him yet for some reason, he wasn't sure why exactly but Elliot could tell something was up with Olivia and this meeting hadn't gone well. He wanted to get to the bottom of it and work out what the next steps were from here but he knew now to push her right now.

"Thank you for pushing to come with me today…Thank you for coming" Olivia said once the driver had started the commute back home.  
"There is no other place I would rather be right now, I just wish you would have let me come in" Elliot took Olivia's hand in his.  
"It was better that you didn't. I don't want to get into specifics but things aren't going to be any easier from here now" Olivia explained.  
"Whatever she said, we'll get through it together. If we have to go to court or something then we'll do that. She's not getting away with what she did" Elliot said as he gave her hand a soft squeeze. It was the slightest touch, but it really meant the world to Olivia right now. It meant more than she knew how to explain, because it gave her the knowledge, she really wasn't alone in all of this – Elliot was here and he wasn't going anywhere. There was just so much he didn't know…  
"Thank you" Olivia squeezed his hand back in response. It was surprising in just a few days of being together, she already felt like they'd taken some big steps in this relationship. Olivia found herself growing to trust Elliot more, wanting to be around him more and simply wanting him in her life so much right now. She could feel that when Elliot said they would fight this together, he really meant it and he really meant he wasn't going anywhere. She just couldn't quite strike up the courage to tell Elliot about the past yet, she didn't want to break what had been growing between them so well.

_**A/N: So this will likely be my last update before the holidays, so I wanted to wish you all a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year. I hope you all have a wonderful holiday season with your loved ones/friends. Thank you to all of you who take an interest in my stories and stick with me so passionately like this. I'm grateful for each and everyone one of you and your reviews mean the world to me.**_

_**Next Chapter; Alex and Olivia have a serious conversation that makes things a little too real and Elliot gets an unexpected delivery that may just shape things moving forward – but what will that mean for our new couple?**_

_**Until Next Time ;D**_


	28. Conversations

**Chapter 28 – Conversations**

Olivia hardly said a word to Elliot on the entire drive home from the jail, the car ride had been about as silent as the drive up there, but her thoughts were in a different place now. She held Elliot's hand tight in her own and just stared out the window, thinking about what Dani had said, the threats she had made and how they could protect themselves against it. Dani was threatening to ruin her with the news about her past and the obvious solution was to just let people know about it before Dani could even tell anyone. Olivia knew that there was only one person that Dani was really targeting with this information and that was Elliot. So, she needed to tell him about her past and where Chloe came from before Dani could even get to him. Olivia was beginning to trust Elliot and she was starting to believe they could make this work, but she simply couldn't put it all into words just yet. Olivia had felt the want to on the car journey home, just to get everything out there before Dani could ruin it. But Olivia found her mouth just wouldn't co-operate.

There was so much Olivia had to think about and she felt the need to talk to someone about it, someone who already knew everything in her past and could tell her what to do next. She knew that person was Alex and she needed to have a big conversation with Alex when they eventually made it home. Olivia felt bad for being so quiet on the ride to and from the prison. Elliot had taken the day off work or at least away from the office to do this with her and yet she'd acted almost like he wasn't there. She didn't mean for it to be like that, she just couldn't talk about it all with him yet. She hoped one day soon they would get to a place where every thought she had, she could share with him, and they would work things out together.

Elliot had kissed her when they arrived to her apartment and he walked her to the door of her building. She didn't invite him up though as she really didn't want him to see her shoebox apartment. In fact, she'd only really let him drop her off like this out of courtesy and because she felt bad for ignoring him so much on the drive back. Olivia had thanked him for coming with her today and told him she'd call him later. She just needed to process the day first and get some advice from Alex about moving forward.

* * *

Later that afternoon, when Chloe was down for her nap, Alex knew it would be the best time to approach what had happened at the prison today. When Olivia had arrived home, Chloe had become the centre of her attention and from the way Olivia was holding and attending to that little girl, Alex could tell something had shaken her in this meeting. Alex had honestly thought that it would be good for Elliot to be the one to go with Olivia today, so she wasn't going to be by herself. But something about the way Olivia had been when she came home, told Alex that she'd not spoken with Elliot about anything. Alex really wanted to be there for her friend, but she honestly didn't understand why Olivia was so hesitant to talk to Elliot about her past.

"So, how did it go today?" Alex asked, unsure the best way to start the conversation.  
"It was…not the best" Olivia confessed, she couldn't hide anything from Alex, if Alex wanted to know something, Olivia would tell her.  
"What happened?" Alex continued to push and Olivia continued on to explain everything in the conversation with Dani. She explained how Dani threatened to take Chloe away from her, about the way that Dani had said that Brian now knew about Chloe and finally, the fact that unless she gave everything up in terms of the charges, Brian would fight for Chloe. That was the last thing Olivia wanted and it was the biggest thing that she was struggling with.  
"So, what does that mean you're going to do?' Alex asked, wondering if Olivia had plans for her next steps forward.  
"I don't know, I want to pursue this further, I want her to get the justice for the trauma she caused those kids, but I don't want to go to court"  
"Have you discussed any of this with Elliot?" Alex asked, wanting to know whether there had been discussions with Elliot about any of this and if so, then what had he suggested they do.  
"I could barely form sentences together in the car ride on the way home, let alone tell him in detail what happened" Olivia explained.  
"So, he doesn't know any of this?" Alex queried as Olivia just shook her head.  
"You've got to tell them, I think now more than ever you've got to put him about not only what Dani has said but also about the past. It will be better coming from you than coming from someone else" Alex explained, she had a point.

"I don't want to lose him, everything between us is new but it feels so right and I don't want to throw that away"  
"Olivia, that man gave up his afternoon yesterday and all day today to see you and make sure that you were ok today. Our conversation at the zoo, showed me that whilst everything is new between you two, he's all in and he wants to be there for you. You've just got to trust that he will stand by you in this too, and if he doesn't, then he was never going to be the right man for you" Alex explained. Olivia could hear how straight to the point she was being right now. Olivia knew that she had a point and this conversation did need to be had between her and Elliot, she just wasn't sure the best way to say everything.

* * *

**Olivia: Hey Elliot, it's Alex – Olivia's friend. I'm borrowing her phone as I needed to contact you. I heard how Olivia's barely spoken with you on the car journey's today and I want you to know she had her reasons for that. But I also want you to know that she's ok. Her meeting with Dani today was rough, and there were some rather serious things said. But she promises me, that she'll tell you soon enough. Just know, she's really grateful to you for being there today and, as her best friend, I'm glad you were there too **Elliot read the message just as he walked into the apartment after the daily school pick up. Dickie had gone home with another friend, so it was just Elizabeth and him for the afternoon. But Olivia had been on Elliot's mind since he left her place earlier.  
**Elliot: Hi Alex. Thank you for letting me know that Olivia is ok. I could tell something was on her mind when she came back to the car and on our ride home. I wasn't going to push her to tell me though, I just want her to know that I'm here. She's not in any serious danger though is she? Do I need to be concerned? Thank you for reaching out :) **Elliot quickly replied as Elizabeth unpacked her school bag and Bertie brought her an afternoon snack that had already been prepared.

**Olivia: She's been a bit shaken from today but no, she's not in any danger. I will say this without going into too much detail though. She's not had an easy past and there are things which she might tell you of this past which can seem intense. However, I ask, if you're serious about her and your feelings about her, you tell that to her when she decides it's the right time to share about her past. You need to show her that it doesn't matter what might have happened in the past, it matters about now and that you're not going anywhere. She's going to be back here any moment and I don't want her to know I'm texting you but…just look after her **Alex quickly typed to Elliot and again, he was confused. Alex had insinuated that there was something more that had happened in Olivia's past that related to today, which he'd not known or heard about. What was it that she was seemingly so scared to tell him? Why was she scared? Elliot really didn't want Olivia to ever be afraid to tell him something, he wanted her to be able to confide in him like he felt he could do with her. He would do absolutely anything for her, if he needed to.

* * *

Elliot walked into his office the next morning, after the usual school drop off. He saw Olivia in the classroom, and he had to admit he was glad she was there. Olivia had apologised to him for being rather quiet towards him yesterday afternoon, to which he'd said there was no need for apologies, but they would talk more about it later. Elliot placed his briefcase down on his desk and found a yellow envelope there addressed to him. He wasn't expecting any personal mail and this envelope looked a little different to the usual mail he received.  
"Ashley, what is this?" Elliot asked, holding the envelope in his hands and walking out to his assistants desk.  
"I don't know sir, it arrived by courier this morning and looked fairly urgent, so I put it on your desk" Ashley explained to which Elliot was confused but thanked her and went back into the office.

Elliot took a seat at his desk chair and glanced at the envelope, everything in him wanted to open it. He couldn't help but wonder whether this would be one of those times where there was a bomb waiting inside and everyone was going to die, or if that just happened in movies. Elliot opened the envelop and slid out the contents into his hand. _No bomb there _Elliot thought to himself as he opened the note. 'You may think you know someone but everyone has their dirty little secrets, have you looked into those of your favourite school teacher? All is not what it seems' Elliot read before looking over the photos that were with the note. There seemed to be a number of a younger looking Olivia, walking out of what appeared to be a court house with some kind of bruising. The bruises looked like the same that Dani had given her but there was no way that was possible. What was going on right now? Who was trying to cause issues with them? Elliot had so many questions now both about this mystery sender and the photos themselves.  
**Elliot: I think we need to talk** Elliot quickly messaged Olivia. He figured that getting to the bottom of this would involve starting at the exact person in the photos. Olivia surely had to know something.

_**A/N: Well I wonder how this is going to go down? Who's sending Elliot photos of Olivia? What are the trying to do? Will Olivia actually tell Elliot about her past now? Guess you'll have to wait and see. Hopefully i can get the next chapter up soon but Reviews really help me stay motivated so if you leave me one and let me know what you thought of this chapter, that would be fantastic!  
**__**Until Next Time :D**_


	29. The Past

**29\. The Past**

Olivia made her way outside of the main school building, escorting her class to the pickup point where parents were already waiting. For once, she didn't really want to see Elliot, she didn't want to have to talk with him. He'd texted her earlier today saying they needed to talk and Olivia didn't want to right now. She'd not responded to his message, like she usually would but his message has been on her mind since she read it. Of course, Olivia had texted Alex about it and Alex had told her that talking didn't necessarily mean a particular conversation was bad. Olivia couldn't help but worry though as she'd been told 'we need to talk' before by Brian and that had never ended well. _Elliot isn't Brian _Olivia had to keep reminding herself and she just tried to focus on the job at hand. She had to make sure that the children were going to be safe and could get home safely. She could avoid Elliot if she wanted to hard enough, she knew she shouldn't though. Thankfully another parent came up to speak with Olivia when Elizabeth spotted her father. Olivia could deal with that situation another day.

After all the children had all been collected by their parents, Olivia had made her way back into the building with Clara, to work on a few things and catch up on things that she had missed with her time off recently. Clara had been very effective in catching Olivia up on everything she had missed the past couple of days. This was especially helpful where some of the more vulnerable children in class hadn't been coping with her absence very well. Clara was fitting into the classroom absolutely perfectly and Olivia was so grateful for her, especially right now.  
"Mr Stabler asked after you when you were talking to Daniel's mother" Clara remarked as they started to clear the classroom for the day.  
"Oh really? What's up? Did he say?" Olivia asked, she didn't know why Elliot was going to Clara to ask to speak with her. But then again, she had bene the one to ignore his text messages all day.  
"He just wanted to know how today had been and if you were free for a meeting. I explained to him that he'd have to check at a later stage for a meeting with you, as I wasn't sure what your schedule was like" Clara continued to explain as she placed the chairs up on the desks. The classroom was due to be vacuumed before school tomorrow morning and having the chairs on the desk made that job easier for the cleaners.

"Well, I have a number of different meetings over the next couple of days with parents wanting to meet with me. There are even a number of emails that I've not even got back to yet" Olivia explained, thinking about that long list of unanswered or even read emails she had in her inbox at the moment.  
"You'd think people would understand that it's your first day back and to give you some space"  
"Well this is an elite private school, they all simply want the best for the children" Olivia remarked, she understood the majority of the people's desires to speak with her like this. But sometimes she had to admit the constant requirement to speak with her, did make the rest of her life a little more difficult. She loved teaching children and making a difference, but she hated the politics that came with it.

* * *

Elliot had to speak with Olivia, he just had to get to the bottom of what was going on now and why he was getting mail with images of her and threats. He had texted her earlier and expected that she would text him back when she got the chance, but she hadn't done so yet. He hadn't had a chance to talk to her in the playground and see if they could arrange a time to meet up. So he figured, what better what to talk than to give her a ride home from work. He knew she would like that, and the twins were perfectly fine at home with Bertie. There had been 2 more envelopes delivered to him today, they had once again been couriered and once again there had been messages and photos. One had what looked like photos of baby Chloe, with the message 'you think you know her story, but I know you don't' and then there was one with photos of Olivia and Chloe, with the caption 'wonder what her life would be like if everything was taken'. Elliot had concerns over Olivia's safety right now and he wondered if someone was seriously out to get Olivia but going through him. He just had to get to the bottom of everything sooner rather than later. He didn't know whether she had finished for the day and left already or whether he would catch her now. But since Olivia wasn't responding to his messages, Elliot just had to wait.

"Mr Stabler?" Olivia stated, clearly shocked to see him waiting there for her as she walked outside the school with Clara. Elliot stood up from the car and waited as Olivia bid farewell to Clara for the day.  
"Wh-What are you doing here?" Olivia asked, when Clara was out of earshot.  
"We need to talk" Elliot simply replied.  
"I don't have ti-"  
"Let me drive you home then, you didn't respond to my message and I didn't get to speak with you before…Please, it's important" Elliot interrupted Olivia's decline, hoping now she would actually accept his suggestion for once. Olivia hesitated briefly and appeared to be considering her options.  
"Alright…But, I think we need to go somewhere other than home right now, you are right in that we need to talk" Olivia agreed as she got into the back of the car, now Elliot was nervous.

* * *

The car pulled up at a park, where he had been directed to go by Olivia. She had thought it was the perfect place, not far from her apartment, where they could talk and Elliot had agreed. The pair had barely spoken on the drive here though and when they got to the park, Elliot had helped Olivia out. He knew he had things to talk with her about but if she wanted to talk as well, this couldn't be good. Elliot made sure to grab the big yellow envelopes he'd received today, to show Olivia what had been going on. Neither of the pair were really sure how to start the conversation, but Elliot was sure he had to be a gentleman and let Olivia go first.

"How about you go first" Elliot stated, as the pair sat on a bench towards the back of the park.  
"Alright, well…I guess I just want to start by thanking you for coming with me yesterday, to the prison. I also want to apologise as I was rather quiet but…there were a couple of things that happened that I simply didn't know how to tell you about" Olivia started to explain.  
"You don-"  
"Please, just let me finish or I won't get this out and I want to tell you" Olivia requested, to which Elliot just nodded and stay silent. He could tell that whatever Olivia wanted to tell him was important.  
"Things between us have been going really well, I know it's only been a couple of days and we've been rather busy with the children and everything. But I feel that what we have started here, feels really special. It feels better than anything I've ever had before. But it's this reason but I need to tell you something, and I have a feeling that what I need to tell you, may ruin what we have" Olivia said, looking down at her hands, showing she was uncomfortable.

"Hey, hey, hey. You don't have to do this" Elliot placed his hands over Olivia's in her lap, he didn't want her to put herself through serious turmoil like this.  
"I do…I can't just keep this in any longer, especially after yesterday" Olivia explained and Elliot couldn't help but grow concerned with what Olivia was going to tell him, and what had happened yesterday.  
"There is a lot about me which you don't know…Especially about my past and it's something that I hadn't been planning to tell you about just yet…But now, I don't have a choice. There are things which happened, that I'm pretty sure will ruin what we have. But that's a chance I'm going to take now or it's only going to get worse" Olivia remarked, knowing that she had the motivation to tell Elliot now and if she didn't, she didn't know when she'd get it again.  
"The reason that I'm fighting so hard to keep us out of court, is because I've been there before, I've been to a trial and it's not an easy process. It's a process that I would do anything to keep your two beautiful children away from" Olivia explained and Elliot clicked about the photos he'd seen earlier. Was that from when she'd been on trial? What had been on trial for? This still didn't explain why Olivia had been smiling though, as surely a trial was not a positive experience.

"I wasn't the one that was on trial though, my ex-fiance was. He was on trial for domestic abuse and I was there to testify. In fact, that same man is Chloe's biological father but until now…he had no idea that she even existed. The domestic abuse was again me and after his trial, I fled from him to my father's place and had Chloe. Then when Chloe was 6 months old, we moved here to New York. Look, I know what your thinking, and I know it must make me..not as pure or special as you may have previously thought and I understand if this is the end of us. But I just couldn't hold this in anymore to have you find out this elsewhere" Olivia said as she looked away from Elliot, trying to hold back the tears which had formed over their relationship likely ending.

* * *

Elliot couldn't believe what he was hearing, Olivia was a victim to domestic abuse and that same man was Chloe's father. However Elliot had to admit he was more shocked at the fact Olivia thought this would end them. He hated how she thought this made her 'damaged goods' and that he would never want to be with her again now, but she couldn't be more wrong. This news only made him want to prove to her what true love should be like. He wanted to change all her thoughts about men, show her how happy they could be and protect her from everything else. The news that Olivia had shared with him now, helped him to understand the photos he'd seen but still now where they'd come from.

"Everyone has a history, no-one's history is perfect and if you think any of this is going to make me walk away from you, from us, then you couldn't be more wrong. Olivia, you have been hurt but you have survived and made it out of a really difficult situation. I'm sorry that you ever felt like you couldn't share this with me till now, and that you were feeling like this confession would break what we have. But I promise you, it's not going to. Actually, this sounds exactly like what I've been wanting to talk to you about though, as I've received a few envelopes today with pictures of you in and messages" Elliot explained as he handed Olivia the envelope addressed to him.  
Olivia could feel her stomach churning, as she suspected that she knew where this envelope had come from. Olivia inspected it closely and the contents inside. There were photos of her from the day she testified against Brian, photos of Chloe as a newborn in hospital and even a newspaper article about the case with Brian, which Olivia had no idea existed. Olivia knew exactly who these had come from though and she knew exactly what was going on.

"These are from Dani" Olivia stated.  
"What? How do you know that? There's no mailing address" Elliot asked, confused over how Olivia had so easily known exactly where these had come from and the story about them.  
"She told me, when I saw her at the prison. If I didn't completely agree to her terms, then she had information that could ruin me and she would expose it to the world and everyone I hold close" Olivia explained  
"B-How did she know about us?"  
"I don't think she does, at least not the us that we are now. She knew something was between us though from early on and I think part of her was jealous over that. To be honest, I don't know but if you've got these, I hate to think what else she's already done" Olivia ran a hand through her hair at the thought of what else Dani had done.  
"Whatever it is, we'll fight it together. Olivia, you mean the absolute world to me and I hate to think about all you've been through. No man should ever lay a hand on a woman like that. But I promise you, as long as you let me, I'm not going to let anyone hurt you like that ever again" Elliot stated as Olivia just sealed her lips in his, she couldn't help but feel immense love for this man right now.  
"Thank you for telling me about your past, but I promise you it doesn't change the way I feel about you, it never will and we are going to fight whatever Dani throws at us together" Elliot said once they broke apart before pulling Olivia into his arms and she snuggled against his chest. This wasn't the way she had been convinced the conversation was going to go but she was glad that Elliot hadn't been scared off by her past.

* * *

Elliot lay awake, staring at the ceiling and processing the thoughts on everything from today. He had to admit he was shocked by how intense Olivia's past had been and felt sorry that she had been through so much like that. She had been with an abusive man and Elliot couldn't help to cringe at the thought that man did to Olivia. Elliot made a vow at the time Olivia was telling him about this, that he would do everything in his power to protect her and he would never, ever lay a hand on her in that way. He was grateful though, in a way, that Olivia had been able to get herself out of that situation, put the wicked man behind bars for what he did and get her daughter away from it all. Elliot didn't know what the exact story with Chloe and her father was, but he would protect that little girl just as much too. He felt a special connection with Chloe already, just in the short time he'd known her, and Elliot wanted to grow that connection. _No one is ever going to hurt either of you whilst I'm around – I won't let them_ Elliot vowed right before drifting off to sleep.

_**A/N: Well we all knew that Elliot was never going to walk away from Olivia over her past, but she's finally told him now and I wonder what will happen next with these photos? Up next; Our favourite duo take the next step in their relationship – a first date.  
Let me know what you thought of this chapter by leaving a review and hopefully, I'll have another chapter up for you all soon. Updates are a little slow at the moment as real life is so busy but I am trying to be motivated enough to write, edit and update. Thank you for reading though, it means a lot.  
Until Next Time ;)**_


	30. First Date

_**A/N: So I apologise for the long wait between chapters, I've had a very hectic few weeks in personal life, including having to drop everything and fly half way around the world to deal with family issues. I also had a really difficult time staying motivated to edit this chapter before I posted. But I hope you enjoy.**_

**30\. First Date**

Thursday wasn't anything special, in fact Olivia was glad that the schedule was same as every week, as it was the only thing that was the same this week. So much had happened in the space of a few short days, that Olivia was starting to feel a little out of control. There was really only one small development in the rest of the week, Elliot had come into the classroom first thing on Thursday morning and asked her out for Friday night. Olivia accepted almost instantly, this was going to be their first proper date since they had become a couple and Olivia was rather excited by the prospect of going on a date. Especially after everything that Elliot had done for her this week, there was nothing more she liked the thought of than properly having some alone time with Elliot. She had been alone with him this week but they had been in the car going to the jail or they were having more important conversations about Olivia's past. This date would mean they could truly focus on just being them, they didn't have to worry about their children or work or school or even Dani for that matter. Olivia had even made a vow to herself that she wouldn't let them go there in conversation, she just wouldn't have it. They may be having to deal with Dani, but she wouldn't let it ruin their evening.

* * *

Elliot had a certain swing in his step Friday morning, as he strolled into his office. Several of the other workers noticed this swing and figured something had happened. Either it was he'd received really good news about the business growth or he'd simply got a new lady friend and been frisky between the sheets last night. No one was game enough to ask Elliot though, for the risk of whatever the proper outcome was. The truth of the matter was, Elliot was simply excited that it was Friday today and that he had a date tonight. He was taking Olivia out on their first date and he'd been busy last night organising it all. He knew that it would have to be somewhere relatively secluded, because they were still in the early stages of the relationship and Olivia didn't want many people knowing. Elliot also knew, from what Olivia had mentioned, there would likely be repercussions from their relationship in terms of things at school if they were found out together at this stage. So, Elliot really understood why Olivia was so passionate about keeping things rather quiet. It really wasn't that she didn't want people to know nor was it that she wasn't happy in this relationship or ashamed about it. She just didn't want to face the repercussions.

Elliot knew that tonight was the best opportunity for a date as they'd been dating for over a week, almost 2 weeks now – yes, even though he was a guy he made note of the small things like this. Not to mention with everything else he had going on over the next couple of weeks he likely wouldn't get another chance to take Olivia out. Elliot's mother was arriving tomorrow and then with his birthday next week and travel after that, Elliot wouldn't have much spare time and he didn't want to leave it even longer to take her on a date. So tonight, they were going to be going to a beautiful French restaurant, where Elliot had booked a separate dining area just for the two of them. Then if Olivia felt up to it, Elliot thought they could take a stroll along the waterfront which wasn't too far from the restaurant, or he could just take her home. He felt like this was rather romantic and he already had other plans for dates in the future if tonight went well.

"Mr Stabler…Sir" Ashley called from the entrance to the office, where she'd found Elliot standing by the windows, looking out over New York and clearly lost in thought.  
"Yes? Sorry Ashley" Elliot apologised.  
"It's alright sir, I was just wondering whether you wanted this yellow envelope which had been delivered before you came in today or not?"  
"Thank you" Elliot agreed as he walked over and received the envelope from Ashley's hands. It had the same scrawly writing on the front as the ones he'd received on Wednesday and the one he received yesterday but threw out instantly. Elliot didn't understand why they were still coming or what they could mean. Olivia had already told him about them, he didn't understand what Dani was clearly still trying to get at.

He opened the first envelope and slid the contents out onto his desk. There was a note, and what appeared to be a hospital report. The note with this read _Funny how you hear one side of the story when really you should believe the other…I know Olivia may play the victim to you but really, it's the men she spends time with who should be worried…Little Miss Benson packs a strong punch. _Elliot could feel the rage building up inside him, he scrunched the note and chucked it in the bin, not even looking at the hospital report. He knew this wasn't about Olivia, clearly it would have to have been the man she was with before. If Olivia had hurt him, it was in self-defence, Elliot didn't need to know anymore. He ripped up the report and threw it in the bin as well, this was not important, but Elliot just couldn't help to wonder when they were going to stop.

* * *

Olivia stood in front of the bedroom mirror, smoothing over her outfit once more and making sure everything was in the right place. Alex was again going to watch Chloe for Olivia, which she didn't mind doing at all but Olivia couldn't help to feel guilty over using her best friend as a babysitting service. Olivia almost felt like she was neglecting their friendship. In the time that Alex had been here, between work, issues with Dani and being with Elliot, she and Alex had hardly spent much time together or really explored this city together. Olivia was determined to make that up to Alex and they would spend time together this weekend without any other interruptions. She knew that Elliot would be busy with his mother coming into town and there was very little else that required her extensive attention, outside of family.  
"Wow…Elliot is one lucky man. Doesn't mommy look pretty Chloe?" Alex remarked as she appeared in the doorway to Olivia's room, holding Chloe on her hip.  
"Pweety" Chloe echoed.  
"Aww, thank you sweetie. You better be good for Aunty Alex tonight" Olivia said, smiling over to her little girl and she could already tell Chloe was tired and it wouldn't be long till she was in bed.  
"She will be, won't you Chlo? We're going to have lots of fun together tonight. Though I think mommy might be having more" Alex remarked as Olivia just rolled her eyes, of course Alex would go there.  
"It's dinner, nothing more and don't you go corrupting my daughter now" Olivia warned.  
"Sure, do you go to all your _dinners_ looking like that?"  
"Only when I have someone to impress" Olivia replied, smiling at the thought that she had dressed tonight especially for Elliot.

"Do you know where he's taking you tonight?" Alex asked, wondering if she could get more information on what tonight would entail.  
"Nope, Elliot just said that he was picking me up – no arguments to that and that I had to dress nice"  
"Well you definitely checked that box" Alex teased to which Olivia rolled her eyes again at that remark. She had dressed tonight to look nice for Elliot, she didn't care or want the attention from anyone else.  
"I'm sorry that you've been here a week and all I've done is make you babysit my daughter. But tomorrow, you, me and Chloe are going to have a girl's day and get out to explore the city" Olivia apologised to her friend as she fixed her earrings in front of the mirror.  
"You don't have to apologise, I came to support you and you know I love spending time with the little monkey. I also love seeing you happy and I can tell that Elliot makes you happy"  
"He…He's a great guy and I really enjoy spending time with him"  
"You know, you've taken some big steps this week with him and he's still here" Alex commented.  
"Yeah, he is" Olivia smiled as she grabbed her jacket from the wardrobe. Being late October now, there was a definite chill in the air and Olivia was going to need this. It wouldn't be too long now till Elliot was here to pick her up and she had to be ready.

* * *

Elliot felt nervous as he stood outside the bottom of Olivia's apartment building. He had been surprised that he actually agreed to him picking her up at her building, but he wasn't entirely surprised she wouldn't let him up to the apartment itself. This was a start though and he would take everything he could get. The minute Olivia walked out of the lobby and towards the door, he felt his jaw drop to the floor. She was simply stunning. He loved the way that her hair looked to be softly curled but was just falling off her shoulders. He was having difficulty keep his eyes off Olivia's amazing figure and the way that this dress just clung to her in all the right places. He was the luckiest man to have her on his arm tonight.

"Good evening" Elliot greeted as he opened the door for Olivia, and she smiled softly.  
"Hi" Olivia greeted in return.  
"You look beautiful" Elliot commented before he gave her a soft kiss in greeting.  
"Thank you, you don't look so bad yourself" Olivia replied, taking Elliot's arm and the pair headed to the car. Elliot helped Olivia into the backseat and got in beside her. Olivia listened for Elliot to tell the driver where to go but he simply nodded and the driver started away from the kerb. Elliot couldn't help but smile at himself as he'd seen Olivia shake her head before looking out the window. He knew she'd been listening in to see if she could work out where they were going.  
"Are you actually going to tell me where we're going?" Olivia asked,  
"Nope, it's a surprise. But I feel fairly certain you'll like it" Elliot remarked as he just help Olivia's hand in his whilst the car wound it's way through the streets, heading to the restaurant.

* * *

Elliot couldn't keep the smile off his face when they finally made it to the restaurant and were being shown back to the individual room that he'd booked with a view. He'd seen the other men in the restaurant look up at Olivia as she walked past with her hand in his and Elliot knew they were jealous. He didn't care though as this beautiful woman was all his and he was going to spoil her every chance he got.  
"Have I told you how beautiful you look tonight?" Elliot asked once he and Olivia were seated at the table and the waitress had already taken their drink orders.  
"Yes, but you can tell me again" Olivia smiled over the menu at him in return.  
"I think you look stunning, I like that dress on you and have to admit, I'm glad you're on my arm tonight and not anyone else's" Elliot flirted which made Olivia blush. He knew she was flattered by the compliment, but he was just speaking the truth. The pair managed to decide on a couple of dishes to order and agreed to just share them. The waitress quickly returned with their drinks and took the food orders before disappearing again.

"This room is beautiful" Olivia remarked as she looked around at the pictures on the wall. Elliot spent most of the time just looking at her.  
"I'm glad you like it. I wanted to bring you somewhere but keep it private"  
"You did a great job" Olivia replied as she reached across the table and took Elliot's hand in her own. She was really impressed by everything he'd done tonight.  
"You only have a first date once, usually. So it needs to make an impact" Elliot stated, he was glad she'd liked his choice of place and hoped the remainder of tonight would go well.

Dinner was fantastic and Olivia couldn't quite believe how good the food was, but then again she knew that it was unlikely Elliot would ever tolerate anything less than top quality. The conversation between the pair had been light, they had made a special effort not to discuss anything relating to the case with Dani or Dani herself, they talked about the children for a little while but the majority of conversation was more focused around them and their plans moving forward. Elliot told Olivia all about his travel plans for the upcoming few weeks and whilst Olivia was glad to hear that he was busy with work, she felt a hint of sadness that it wouldn't be easy to see him whilst he was away travelling. She knew that the children would be in perfect hands with his mother in town though. After the meal was finished, the pair decided to share chocolate tart for dessert and Elliot would be lying if he said he didn't want to share. He even took the opportunity to feed Olivia the first bite, which she hadn't refused him doing so.

* * *

The pair then decided that after eating so much, they needed a stroll. There was a slight chill in the air but neither minded, they were simply too wrapped up in each other. Olivia was having a truly wonderful night that she didn't want to end anytime soon and Elliot just wanted to spend more time with her. He took her down to the waterfront, like he had wanted to and the pair slowly strolled along the front, admiring the view and just talking.  
"So, if you leave after next week, you're going to be away for Halloween…I bet the twins are going to miss having you here to trick and treat with" Olivia commented.  
"I was hoping this would be the first year that I could actually go with them as we're not throwing a big company Halloween celebration at the hotel this year. But instead they'll have me in Florida, doing the ground-breaking ceremony on the new hotel out there. I haven't exactly told the twins that I'm going yet" Elliot explained, he had been really looking forward to Halloween but now he'll be away.  
"Do you ever get the chance to say no to these arrangements? I would have thought with it being your company, you could choose when to go?"  
"Well, to an extent I can. But the difference is, some of these events have strict deadlines which I can't get out of. Then there are conferences which people want me to talk at, as it brings good business for the hotel and I share supposed wisdom I have to others, and I don't get a chance to pick when they are held. This will be the first trip away though that I actually feel bad for" Elliot confessed and Olivia could tell from his expressions that Elliot didn't really want to go.

"It's only 2 weeks, it'll be over before you know it…the kids will be fine" Olivia comforted, she could tell Elliot felt guilty for leaving.  
"What about you?"  
"Oh, I might throw a part with you not around and who knows…pretend this never existed?" Olivia teased as she looked over to Elliot and hoped he could tell she was teasing.  
"Ri-ight well…"  
"I'm kidding, I'll miss you but there is this thing, called a telephone and if you put a sequence of numbers in it…"  
"Ha-ha, very funny…I can't do this type of thing on the phone though" Elliot remarked as the pair stopped walking and Elliot leaned in and sealed his lips over Olivia's.  
"Now that…I think I'll miss" Olivia replied as she kissed him again, every time she kissed him, she got the same butterfly feeling in the stomach. Tonight, had truly been a wonderful night, the best first date she'd ever had, and she couldn't wait to see what happened next.

_**A/N: Well you can't have all drama all the time, I've got to put some fluffy stuff in here and there to keep this relationship growing. Personally, I think these pair are kind of cute. Next chapter we meet Elliot's mother and her arrival which, has some interesting moments. Hopefully I'll have a new chapter up again for you soon, with all this self-isolation stuff, makes for good writing time. Please leave me a review and let me know what you think of this chapter. But most importantly, stay safe out there!  
Until Next Time :)**_


	31. Bernie Stabler

**_A/N: Thank you all for your wonderful reviews and I'm glad that you are all loving the way this is going. I promise that there will be more sweet times ahead for our favourite couple but there will be drama too and oh boy, the drama is coming again, the worst is not over. But i suppose the one good thing to come out of this worst situation with the self-isolations, social distancing and everything, I've found myself finding more time to write and edit, so hopefully i can keep chapters coming out relatively quickly._**

**31\. Bernie Stabler**

If you thought that taking two young children who were beyond excited to see their grandmother, to the airport to collect that grandmother, would be easy – you'd be wrong. If you thought that they would be calm and under control and Elliot wouldn't feel like everyone was judging him, you'd be wrong again. It was like Elizabeth and Richard had eaten sugar for breakfast and that they were high off that sugar. Elliot simply couldn't get them to sit down long enough for anything. They would take turns asking him almost every minute 'how much longer daddy?', 'Daddy where's the plane?', 'Daddy where's nanny?' etc. The morning coffee that Elliot had grabbed before they left, had barely kicked in yet and he was already having to try control his children. He loved their excitement to see their grandmother though. He had to admit he'd missed his mother but clearly not as much as the twins had, and this excitement was very cute.

"Daddy, why haven't they got off the plane yet?" Richard asked as Elliot stood by the twins at the gate, waiting for people to start disembarking the plane.  
"Well, they have to make sure everything is safe and ready before they can let people leave the plane" Elliot tried to explain.  
"Why would it not be safe?" Elizabeth asked, following up on what her father had just said.  
"Well, maybe the doors haven't opened yet or the platform hasn't come over to the plane yet and so if people got off the plane without the platform, they would fall and hurt themselves" Elliot continued to explain.  
"But why?" Richard asked  
"Well they wouldn't have anything to stand on, they can't stand on air" Elliot continued to try and explain, hoping this wouldn't be the situation where everything was 'but why' from the twins. He really didn't quite have the energy for that today. He honestly didn't know how long it was going to take for his mother to appear from the plane but he hoped that it wouldn't take too long as the kids would probably lose it. He had a car waiting in private parking, ready to take them all home. He just didn't know how much luggage his mother would be bringing, so Elliot had made sure to get his driver to bring the bigger SUV type car rather than his town car. Elliot just hoped the wait would be over soon.

* * *

The ride home from the airport had been really sweet, with both Richard and Elizabeth trying to tell their grandmother everything that had happened in their lives since they'd last seen her – in the space of 5 minutes. Elliot on the other hand had been texting with Olivia, joking about Chloe and what the mother and daughter pair would be getting up to today. Elliot knew that his mother would likely be suspicious with his consistent attention to the phone and occasional laughs to himself, but he didn't want to end this conversation with Olivia. However, it was Olivia herself that told him to stop talking with her and enjoy this time with his mother. He obviously declined and only when she stopped responding to his messages, did he know she was being serious. He would enjoy the time with his mother here, but he was going to try and talk to her again later today as he couldn't physically see her today, despite how much he may want to.

"What is so important on your phone right now that you won't talk to your mother?" Bernie asked as she stood next to Elliot in the elevator up to the penthouse.  
"Nothing" Elliot lied, Bernie just raised an eyebrow, questioning his remark.  
"Elliot Stabler, I know when your lying" Bernie replied.  
"Mom, really it's nothing, it's just work related" Elliot lied again, he wasn't going to tell his mother that he was texting with a woman whom he was seeing. He wasn't going to tell her about Olivia.  
"And I'm not getting any younger my boy. Put your phone away and be involved" Bernie reprimanded her son. Elliot knew there was no way to get out of this so he placed his phone in his picked and directed everyone out of the lift to the living room.

"Now, how is the business going?" Bernie asked, once she had her son's attention.  
"It's good, the Florida hotel is almost ready to start being built. I'm flying out there the week after next for the ground breaking ceremony and then I have to attend a conference in Toronto. All the other chains of the hotel are going well though, making serious profit and the Honolulu branch is looking to expand" Elliot explained to which his mother was very impressed to hear of it all going well.

"Daddy, you're leaving?' Elizabeth spoke up. It was obvious that she was listening into this conversation.  
"Not yet sweetheart, I have to go away in a little while but not just yet" Elliot tried to soothe the girls worries.  
"Not before your birthday though, right?" Richard asked  
"No, not till after my birthday" Elliot confirmed.  
"Can Miss Benson look after us again when you go away daddy?" Richard asked which took Elliot by complete surprise. He didn't expect Richard to ask for Miss Benson, he had expected that type of question from Elizabeth.  
"Yes please daddy…I want to stay with Miss Benson" Elizabeth chimed in. Elliot looked up and saw his mother was giving him the same look she'd given him earlier, with one raised eyebrow. Clearly she had questions and Elliot hadn't been wanting to touch this topic just yet but looked like the children had thrown him right into it.

"Nanny has come all the way out here to visit us and spend some good time with you two yet already you want to replace her? That's not very nice. I know you two had fun when Miss Benson was here and she hasn't looked after you in a while but Nanny is here to stay with you instead" Elliot explained, wanting desperately to end this conversation. He was glad to hear that his children had such a good time with Olivia and he hoped if things continued to progress with him and Olivia, then in the future they would spend more time all together but now was not that time.  
"Ok…I still want to see more of Miss Benson. Lizzie has her as a teacher and it's not fair, I don't get to see her lots" Richard remarked as he made his way upstairs to his bedroom, he was on a mission to play with his Lego for a while. Elliot knew that Richard had been less than keen for Olivia to look after him and Elizabeth to begin with, so it was surprising now that he was so keen to spend time with Olivia now. But he placed that all down to the incident and wanting in a way, to be protective of Olivia, which Elliot admired in his son.

* * *

Elliot sat in his home office, Bernie was entertaining the twins for now and Elliot had come into his office for a while to work on a few things. But his thoughts had been purely on Olivia. This week had been rather intense in a variety of ways for them, but they'd shared some special times too. Elliot had finally taken Olivia on their first date which Elliot thought was a success and he simply hadn't stopped thinking about her since. He enjoyed their text conversation this morning, and heard all about how they were out early shopping for Chloe but part of him still wanted to talk properly with Olivia. He decided to seize the moment he had by himself for now and just call her. Olivia seemed to take a while to answer the call, not in the usual 2-3 rings but Elliot put it down to himself feeling impatient to speak with her.

"I was just thinking about you" Olivia greeted when she answered the call.  
"Funnily enough, I was thinking about you too" Elliot teased a little.  
"How did this morning go? Did your mother arrive alright?" Olivia asked.  
"She did thank you, the twins could hardly wait to see her, they were desperate before she even got off the plane"  
"That doesn't surprise me, Elizabeth has been talking about her visit for a while"  
"Apparently though they aren't too excited with my mother here to stop them from asking if you can look after them when I go away" Elliot explained, remembering the excitement the twins had earlier when asking if Olivia could look after them and how awkward he felt in front of his mother.  
"Cute. Well I'll see them every day at school and I'm sure we can arrange to spend some time together outside of school when you return" Olivia replied which Elliot liked the sound of, he always liked the idea of spending more time with her.  
"Well yes, you realise though you are going to see them more than I will over the next couple of weeks. So I'm going to be relying on you to make sure they are ok and tell me"  
"Don't I always?" Olivia teased.

* * *

Whilst Elliot was on the phone with Olivia, he had no idea that his mother was outside his office and had been listening to her son's conversation. She didn't know who exactly he was talking to but she knew it had to be important because he seemed to be having a lovely conversation. It had been a while since she'd heard him laughing over the phone like this and genuinely sounding like he was enjoying the conversation, so this mystery person was significant. Bernie would get to the bottom of this.  
Ever since Kathy had walked out, Bernie had been especially cautious around who her son was spending time with, based purely on the concern that he would get close to another woman either too soon or she wouldn't be right. Bernie didn't want her grandchildren, getting attached to another woman who was purely only interested in Elliot's money. She liked to hope though whoever Elliot was talking with now, wasn't like that though. It wasn't that she didn't want her son to find happiness again, to find another woman who could fill the void that was made when Kathy left. Bernie just wanted to know the intentions were right and that she could trust her son and grandchildren were going to be loved as much as they deserved.

Bernie remembered the conversation earlier today, where the children had mentioned a 'Miss Benson' and they seemed to be awfully fond of her. Bernie wondered if this was the same person on the phone right now and what the intentions were. Was this woman actually caring for her grandchildren and son or was this a woman who knew how rich Elliot was and a successful businessman, perfect to get her claws into. She had to give her son some credit though, she knew she brought him up right and she knew that he would surely never be so silly to fall for someone like that. But then again, on the other hand – he had fallen for Kathy, got married and had children before that woman just up and left, right when Elliot needed her the most. It was evident there was some scaring on this children from this and Bernie was extra protective now because of that.

"Nanny, what are you doing?" Elizabeth asked as she came over to where her grandmother was standing by the door.  
"Nothing honey, I was just wondering where your dad had got to but sounds like he is in here, on the phone" Bernie replied.  
"Who is he talking to?" Elizabeth asked, Bernie had been hoping the little girl could answer that, but apparently not.  
"I don't know honey, but I'm sure he'll come and tell us later if we need to know" Bernie said knowing she'd really been found out now and trying to redirect the little girl's attention away from the door before Elliot came out.  
"It could be Miss Benson, daddy talks to her a lot. But I want to talk to Miss Benson too!" Elizabeth stated, trying to go for the handle to open the door, Bernie was quick to stop this.  
"Come on now, we'll go see if there are some afternoon tea snacks ready" Bernie said, guiding Elizabeth away from the door to the study and towards the dining room. She would have to leave this further investigation to another time – she would definitely get to the bottom though.

_**A/N: Well, Bernie has arrived and it looks like she's out to cause a few issues but will these have a good or bad result. Next Chapter; Elliot's time away and what happens when he returns?  
Let me know what you thought of this chapter and how you're finding the story, by leaving a review? I love reading them and they really help me out. Thank you for reading and I hope you enjoy, please stay safe with everything going on in the world right now and remember to wash your hands.  
Until Next Time ;D**_


	32. Halloween

_**A/N: I apologise for the lack of updates recently. For whatever reason, I really struggled to sit down and just edit this chapter. Though I won't delay any longer, please enjoy :)**_

**32\. Halloween**

If Olivia was honest, Halloween had to be one of her favourite holidays. She loved the dressing up as something different every year and going from house to house up and down the streets in search of candy. She doesn't remember Halloweens before being adopted by Don, so Olivia simply knew they couldn't have been very good. Especially when nothing in foster care, was ever very good. But once she'd been adopted, the Halloweens were truly magical and there was just something extra special about Halloween in a small town. Olivia hadn't yet found that special feeling in New York around Halloween and Chloe wasn't really old enough to enjoy it. She wasn't even 2 yet and thus had really only had one other Halloween which was Olivia's first Halloween in New York, and they hadn't even gone trick or treating. This year would be different, Olivia already had the costumes planned out and they would go trick or treating when Olivia made it home from school. Chloe likely wouldn't completely understand it yet but Olivia was determined this would be the year they would start the tradition.

Olivia couldn't help to wonder what the Stabler twins were doing today though. Elliot was still away on business, he'd been gone for just over a week now and Olivia had seen his mother at the school drop off and pick up but hadn't really spoken to her. Olivia thought it was best just to keep her distance unless absolutely necessary to talk to her. Olivia was talking with Elliot almost every night though and providing him with updates on the children, so she didn't really have any need to talk to his mother right now. Elizabeth seemed to be coping well with the absence of her father at the moment but Elliot had told her that was probably due to the fact Olivia was there for her. He certainly wasn't going to be away as long as he had in the past anymore if he could help it. But that didn't change the fact Olivia still wondered what the plans were to celebrate Halloween in the Stabler household. Would their grandmother take them trick or treating? It was a dress up day at school, so she knew the twins would at least do that but she didn't know what else they may have planned.

* * *

Elliot sat at the table in the restaurant section of the hotel he was staying in, he had ordered a large breakfast this morning in preparation for a big day ahead. He had been anxiously checking his phone since he got up to see if there were any pictures of the twins all dressed up for Halloween. He knew how much the twins loved dressing up for occasions like this. Elliot had been with them when they went to the store to pick out their costumes for this year. Elizabeth was going as a teacher and Richard was going as Spiderman, neither costume was that much of a surprise to him this year. Especially considering who Elizabeth's favourite person was right now. But he wanted to see pictures, wanted to see what they looked like before they went to school as he knew it would be highly unlikely his mother would take a photo after school, nor would she taken them out for any kind of celebration of the day.

Ever since Elliot had been little, his mother was always against Halloween. This was part of the reason the hotel threw a huge celebration for families every year on Halloween. Elliot loved Halloween and so did his children, so the family celebration within the hotel was great. People even came to stay at the hotel especially over Halloween, just so they could go to the party. However, this year they weren't planning on holding the party and Elliot had hoped he would be able to take his kids trick or treating. But here he was, stuck in Toronto at a conference and presenting today, so he had to show up. At the very least, he hoped that if his mother didn't send him any photos of the twins, then maybe Olivia could get some. But he wasn't entirely sure how she could pull that off without raising concerns for professionalism or something.

**Olivia: Happy Halloween xxx **Olivia texted Elliot with a picture which made Elliot smile. She had sent him a picture of herself dressed up as Dorothy and Chloe was Toto the dog. Elliot found this really cute and could see how much thought Olivia would have had to put into this to make it work.  
**Elliot: Beautiful x Hope you two have a spook-tastic day, wish I was there **Elliot quickly replied before saving the image to his phone. He really hoped that in years to come, they would all be able to spend Halloween together, dressing up as a family and going trick or treating. Halloween as a young child was quite magical when done right. Elliot never really experienced it himself and he hated missing the joy that his children had over this holiday.  
**Olivia: Next Halloween, I'm sure you will be here. How are the kids' costumes? I can't wait to see them at school **Olivia responded.  
**Elliot: I don't know, I've not heard from my mother this morning or even seen any pictures but I've asked **  
**Olivia: I'll try and get some of Elizabeth at least today and send it to you later, maybe Dickie too. Good luck with your presentation, I know you're going to kill it xxx **Olivia quickly replied as Elliot finished breakfast and made his way back to his hotel room to get ready for the conference to start up again. Today he wasn't just attending it, but he was giving a presentation on starting up a major business and he felt a little nervous.

He'd told Olivia about it last night when he spoke to her before bed and she had provided good advice on presentations and comfort to him, though part of him had wished she was actually there with him at the time. He'd relax if he had her to look at the entire time, as he always felt he could easily talk to her. However, that wasn't possible for the time being and so he would just have to do his best.  
**Elliot: Thanks xx **Elliot quickly replied one last time.

* * *

The class were busy discussing their plans for the evening and where they were all going to go trick or treating. Olivia was glad to hear so much excitement towards it all, but she had noticed Elizabeth seemed a little sad and withdrawn. Olivia had thought Elizabeth was adorable, with how she came to school dressed a teacher. Elizabeth had told her that the costume was based off herself. But Olivia hated the thought that Elizabeth was upset on such an exciting and fun holiday. Elizabeth had been so excited coming to school this morning and she shouldn't be sad now.  
"Are you ok Elizabeth?" Olivia asked as she moved to sit closer to Elizabeth and work out what was going on with her right now.  
"Mmhmm" Elizabeth replied, nodding but Olivia could tell this was clearly not the case.  
"You don't want to come and join everyone else?" Olivia continued.  
"I can't"  
"What do you mean? Everyone can make a bag and I know you will do a lovely design" Olivia encouraged, she was very fond of the little girl's art skills.  
"No, they are making a bag for candy…to go trick and treating…But nanny said me and Dickie aren't going, and there's no hotel party either" Elizabeth explained.  
"You're not going trick or treating this year?" Olivia asked for clarification and Elizabeth shook her head. It was Halloween, no one should miss out on the fun of trick or treating like this. Olivia liked to think that if Elliot was here, the twins would go trick or treating. But maybe his mother is seriously against this holiday.  
"Nanny said it's a bad holiday and that Halloween is silly. Daddy told her on the phone to let us get dressed up for school. Nanny did but Bertie helped me and Dickie get ready not nanny and Nanny said we have to take it all off when we get home and there would be no trick or treating" Elizabeth continued to explain.  
"Well, do you want to know something? Maybe I'll talk to her, maybe I can change her mind" Olivia offered.  
"How?"  
"Well, maybe I can talk to her and see if I can help her out. If she doesn't want to go, maybe you and Dickie can come with me and Chloe? But for now, do you think you can give me a big smile and we'll take a picture of your costume for daddy?" Olivia asked and Elizabeth agreed. They quickly took a picture whilst the rest of the class were distracted and Olivia was going to send it to Elliot.  
**Olivia: Teacher in training – I swear I'm a good influence x **Olivia quickly typed before sending the picture to Elliot. She didn't think she could get a picture quite like this of Richard, but at least she'd managed to get a photo for Elliot, of Elizabeth.

If Olivia was honest, she knew she might be showing a little favouritism to Elizabeth when compared to all her other students. But that may have to partly do with the fact that she knew about this particular little girl's background, she was involved with her father and had worked really hard to help boost Elizabeth's academic results. Olivia was the type of teacher who worked hard to support the academic learning of all her students. But when a student is particularly struggling or has a certain circumstance, Olivia goes above and beyond to provide more individual support, as was the situation with Elizabeth. She knew it would be professional now to give every child in her class a chance to have a photo taken by her. But seeing as the rest of the class were all properly entertained and Clara had them under control, she saw not point in offering this up.

* * *

Bernie was completely against Halloween. She believed that it was a celebration which glorified the dead and gave a reason for children to rot their teeth and not sleep in a week. She didn't partake in any kinds of celebrations on Halloween, she didn't allow her children to when they were growing up and now where she could, she wouldn't let her grandchildren do so either. Of course, that all depended on where exactly she was around Halloween every year as it was rarely ever the same place, along with what kind of a say she had. As Elliot was out of town on business, she was pretty comfortable in taking control over the twins today and making sure that even though it was Halloween, they stuck to their schedule. She had allowed them to be dressed up when they went to school today as they already had their costumes and Elliot had told her that she should allow them that. But Bernie didn't see why it mattered what they did after school, or why today should be any different to any other day. She didn't even see the excitement that the kids had around this day as she thought it was ridiculous. Bernie believed it was stupid for kids to partake in a holiday that worships something which shouldn't be worshipped, like dead people and horror. She didn't even understand why Elliot insisted on throwing big parties at the hotel every year for Halloween but was relieved that they wouldn't be doing that this year.

Bernie watched as the children were all dismissed from their classes, she took notice of all the different costumes that children had on, with disgust. Society really had screwed everything up with how much people clearly celebrated the wrong holiday. She just wanted to collect the twins and get out of here, she had so much else that they needed to do today. Richard came right over the minute he saw her but Elizabeth took a little longer. Bernie had tried to signal the girl down to get her to come over but Elizabeth didn't leave her teacher's side. When Elizabeth eventually did make her way over, it was with her teacher by her side. Bernie didn't know what was going on here but she couldn't help to wonder if something had happened if the teacher was coming. The main reason she ever saw any of the teachers as her children had been growing up, was when something had happened or there was concern.

"Nanny, this is Miss Benson" Elizabeth introduced her teacher.  
"So you're the famous Miss Benson that I've heard so much about. Bernadette Stabler" Bernie introduced herself.  
"It's a pleasure to meet you Mrs Stabler, I've heard so much about you from Elizabeth and it's lovely to meet you" Olivia shook the woman's hand politely.  
"Miss Benson said that Dickie and me could go trick or treat with her today, as you don't like Halloween and don't want do it" Elizabeth jumped in, explaining the whole reason that they were here.  
"Oh, I really don't think that's necessary, Miss Benson is probably very busy and I know your dad wouldn't like you going with someone other than me"  
"But he would like Mss Benson, he told you about Miss Benson looking after us before" Richard chimed into the conversation, aiding the teacher more than his grandmother. Bernie knew that she was going to have a hard time getting them out of this situation but she was going to try.

"I'm sure Miss Benson has had enough time around children today and really just wants to go home, come along now you too" Bernie commented sternly.  
"Really, it's no problem. I can have them home by dinner time" Miss Benson continued to offer, Bernie didn't understand what this woman was trying to get at.  
"You know where they live?" Bernie asked, now more interested in this woman rather than the discussion about this afternoon's activities.  
"Well yes, when Mr Stabler was a little busy at work and couldn't get them from school, I made sure to get them home safely" the teacher explained.  
"Except for the time, you weren't" Bernie remarked, funny how one woman could claim to get her grandchildren home safely, when she knew all about the attack and knew it was this same woman, who had been the victim and the reason for the attack.  
"Excuse me?" Miss Benson clarified, unsure what Bernie was getting at right now.  
"I've seen the video, I know that when you were with my grandchildren, they got attacked and put in danger….So, I don't think it's smart for me to leave two of the most important people to me and their father, in your care. Now if you'll excuse us, we've got things to do" Bernie tried to conclude the discussion.  
"But nanny…you _hate_ Halloween, and I don't want to go with you, I want to go with Miss Benson" Lizzie started to complain.  
"Come on now Lizzie, you know that simply can't happen. But we must leave now as we have many things we need to do and we need to get you out of these horrible costumes. Have a good afternoon Miss Benson" Bernie remarked as they started to leave.  
"You too. I'll see you tomorrow Lizzie" Olivia farewelled the trio but Elizabeth made sure to give her teacher a hug before leaving. Bernie simply couldn't believe the urge of this teacher, trying to take the children away from her for the afternoon. She would never put her grandchildren in her care other than at school where there were others as well, as she wouldn't let them get hurt again.

* * *

Olivia walked back into the classroom and found Clara sitting at a desk, marking the spelling books. The young woman looked up at Olivia as she entered the room and could tell something had happened, as the older woman looked defeated.  
"Just when I think the events of the attack won't affect my career, it does" Olivia sighed.  
"Something happened?" Clara clarified.  
"You try and be helpful, make a suggestion and a grandmother questions whether kids are really safe in my care to begin with" Olivia continued.  
"You know that they are, I know they are and I know that there are a lot of people who know there is very little you wouldn't do for those children. You can't let one person and their opinion get in the way"  
"But…She has a lot of power in terms of pulling children out of the school, out of my class or ruining my career. It only takes one complaint or investigation" Olivia explained  
"You know that she would have to go through the parents though and then the school. If we're talking now about the father being Mr Stabler, I highly doubt he would believe that his children are in danger when with you and I think you know that's true. You also know what happened is not your fault and you ended up in way more trouble then those kids did, because you protected them. So I really don't know what the issue is here. Now, why don't you go home, take Chloe out trick or treating, have a glass of wine and don't let one person ruin your Halloween" Clara stated and Olivia knew she was right.  
"When did the table flip and you became the one providing advice, shouldn't that be me?" Olivia laughed as she grabbed her things together to leave. The only thing that Olivia didn't have an answer to regarding today, was whether she was going to tell Elliot what happened as it was his mother they would be talking about.

* * *

Elliot couldn't believe what his mother had done. He couldn't believe what he had heard from the lips of his daughter. He understood that she didn't like Halloween and she would try stop his children from enjoying the holiday. But he never thought she would reject someone else's offer to look after his children for the afternoon and to say that he would not feel safe with his kids in that person's care. Never mind the fact that his mother had said all of this to someone he cared so much about, she'd said it all to Olivia. Elizabeth had called him in tears once they had got home from school, with the help from Bertie to get the number right. Elliot's heart sank with hearing how upset his little girl was over not being able to go trick or treating. He never wanted his children to be upset, especially not when it was such a fun occasion and something that should be embraced as a child.

He had managed to try and console her, talking things through with the little girl before talking with Richard and then finishing with his mother. Bernie had been adamant that she was right in her decision as this was a holiday that he really should not be encouraging his children to celebrate but Elliot just didn't want to hear it. He wanted his children to be able to celebrate whatever they wanted to, he wanted them to live their lives the way that they wanted to. He hated that he was so far away from home right now and so many people that he loved and cared about were hurt in different ways today. He also hated that Olivia wasn't picking up his call, nor was she responding to his text messages. He hoped it was because she was already asleep or just not near her phone right now. He just hoped she knew that _nothing_ his mother had said to her today, was true. He would have let the twins go with her in a heartbeat if he was there, he would have wanted to go with her too. She surely had to know that.

* * *

Olivia had seen the messages and she'd seen the missed calls from Elliot, she had missed them on purpose. She'd missed them because she knew that he was calling because he'd likely heard what had happened with his mother today. He was calling to make sure that she was alright or tell her nothing which his mother had said was true. Olivia knew this. She had known it and convinced herself of it last night when she was drinking wine and ranting to Alex over the phone. Alex had gone home at beginning of this week as she'd got to go back to work, but Alex and Olivia still spoke often. Alex had even told Olivia that she really needed to come back and visit soon, bringing Chloe with her and even Elliot. Olivia had responded with she would think about it. But last night Alex had re-iterated what Clara had mentioned and what Olivia knew that Elliot would tell her if she spoke with him. Nothing that his mother had said was true, Elliot trusted her and his kids more than anything. She knew she just had to get through the next few days and Elliot would be back again.

**E: I know what my mother said to you. I also hope you know that I don't agree with any of it and there is no one I would trust with my children more than you. Thank you for offering to take them with you and Chloe. I hope that in the future, we can trick or treat all together (I'll even dress up if you're lucky ;P). I hope you're alright, I'll talk to you soon xxx **Olivia read the last message Elliot had sent whilst she'd been asleep. She knew from this message alone he felt guilty about what had happened, and she would call him when she got the chance. She just hoped that she didn't have to deal with his mother again today or that there weren't any repercussion from yesterday's interaction.

* * *

_**A/N: Well you didn't think they were going to be best friends, did you? Did you really think that Elliot's mother was going to be all friendly to Olivia? I wonder how things will go, if she finds out about the relationship between Elliot and Olivia? What will happen when Elliot comes home? Guess we'll have to wait and see.  
Next Chapter: Elliot returns from his business trip – what does that mean for everyone else?**_

_**Please leave me a review and let me know what you thought of this chapter and anything else you want to say. I have loved reading each and every one of them that you leave. Some of them have been so close to what I'm planning with this story, that it's almost like your reading my mind before the review. But I'm really glad that so many of you are enjoying this story.  
Lastly, Happy Easter! Even though this situation might be a little different to anything we've experienced before, I still hope you can enjoy the holiday (and especially the chocolate) and know that there will be good times after this, we will get to see each other again when it's all over.  
Until Next Time :)**_


	33. Setting Things Right

_**A/N:**_  
_**spacekitten2700 – all will be revealed in time. Bernie and Olivia aren't instantly going to be friends, but what happens in the future? I guess you'll have to wait and see. **_  
_**Heart Story – I'm glad you're liking the drama between Olivia and Bernie, whilst it's not ideal, I think it adds a new layer to this story and don't worry there will be more of that to come. We've got to remember, Elliot hasn't been in a relationship with anyone since Kathy walked out, so Bernie is protective and with everything that has happened in this story so far, these two were never going to be instantly friends.**_  
_**Suansil4 - I have some plans for Thanksgiving and future events, don't worry.**_

**33\. Setting Things Right**

A week later, Elliot was on the plane heading home, heading back to New York. He'd told Elizabeth, Richard and his mother that he would be home tomorrow. However, he had been able to move a few things around in his schedule and made a quicker getaway time than he'd thought he would. This meant that he would be back in New York a day early and with time to spare before getting the children from school. He could pick up the twins this afternoon, and more importantly, see Olivia today rather than waiting till tomorrow. Elliot and Olivia had spoken numerous times since the Halloween incident and both had agreed they were ok, Elliot still felt like there was something else between them, something that was hanging in the air between them. He just needed to see her, clear the air and show her that regardless of what his mother may think or say, he wants to be with her and he loves that his children feel the same way.

Elliot couldn't help but feel relief to be going home again, he had actually hated travelling this time around. He hadn't felt this way in a while, as usually he could hardly wait to get away from home for a bit. However, this time around his feelings against travel were from a combination of the drama that his mother had created whilst he was gone and being away form everyone that he cared about. Especially being away from Olivia. There was so much going on right now in terms of their case against Dani, that Elliot found it hard to only be hearing about it over the phone, rather than in person. He wanted to be there when she got more news or there were any developments. That was going to change though, as he was going to be home and he wasn't leaving again anytime soon – at least, not till all of this had been sorted out. To her credit, Olivia had managed to keep him very well updated on how everything was going in terms of their case against Dani. Elliot had also been checking in with Ashley often whilst he'd been away. Ashley had told him that a couple more of those yellow envelopes had turned up for him whilst he'd been away, but she'd just passed them on to the police, as he had told her to do.

Elliot had made the decision to send all future yellow envelopes that he received to Detective Amaro, after discussing it in detail with Olivia. Whilst he had already thrown one envelope out and would be unable to get that back, there would still be sufficient evidence collected with the others. If these envelopes were really coming from Dani, then something needed to be done and things needed to be investigated as to how she was doing it inside prison. However, if she was doing it with an accomplice, then that would be another matter which would add to the case.  
Whilst Elliot had been away on business, he'd heard very little about the case from Detective Amaro, despite asking to be kept in the loop and Olivia didn't really want to talk about it more than necessary. So, Elliot was feeling a little in the dark with it all and looking forward to being back in New York where he could follow everything up himself. Elliot was determined to get everything over with already, so he could focus solely on building this future together with Olivia. He didn't want any more interruptions or problems with this.

* * *

Olivia on the other hand, didn't know if things were every going to get better for her. It seemed that just as she managed to work her way through one mess, something else happened. She had been in constant contact with Detective Amaro these past few weeks and things were seemingly progressing with her case against Dani. But things had also started to surface in terms of her ex Brian – which Olivia had been dreading. She hated the thought that everything which had happened, could result in her losing custody of Chloe. Whilst her lawyer was pretty confident that wouldn't happen, Olivia really wasn't feeling too confident. She wasn't even confident in her lawyer, neither was Alex. Alex had really wanted to help her best friend with this case, especially considering she was a lawyer and she knew her way around the family courtroom. But she simply couldn't as it would be a conflict of interest and likely affect the case itself, as Alex was Chloe's godmother and the case with Brian involved Chloe directly.

Olivia hadn't actually mentioned the new case to Elliot yet, she didn't want him worrying or rushing home from his trip because of her. She had a feeling that he would do that if she told him about this custody battle and how much she was struggling emotionally with it right now. Olivia wouldn't let Elliot leave a business trip and return him for her when he didn't have to. She was glad he was going to be back soon though as she had really missed him in the time that he'd been gone. It was a weird feeling ot be missing someone like this, for Olivia but it clearly showed how much Elliot meant to her and how complete she felt with him around. Olivia had also noticed that Elizabeth was starting to miss Elliot again since he'd been gone. Elizabeth had been a bit sad at school since Halloween and Olivia knew it had to be related to Elliot being away. 2 weeks can seem like forever for a little girl.

* * *

Elliot was a man on a mission, he was on the mission to set everything right with people he cared about, and to put his mother in her place. He wanted his mother to know that she had really crossed a line with him, in doing what she did. He was a respectable man and usually he wouldn't be so determined to put his mother in her place like this, as he respected her and the fact she was his mother. But with everything which had happened in the past month or so, and what he had started with Olivia, he wasn't going to let his mother continue to try ruin it. Olivia was someone that Elliot felt protective of, especially after everything that was happening with Dani, and he would protect her and what they had till the very end.  
Elliot had spoken with Olivia the day after Halloween and she'd thanked him for his messages and his calls. She apologised for not returning them but she'd explained to him that she was going through some things after the events of the day and Elliot understood. He as glad that Olivia had told him she knew what his mother had said wasn't true, at least not to him. He was glad that despite how hurt she may have been feeling and the events did change things between them for a little bit, Olivia still felt comfortable enough to tell him that she was going through things, and wasn't avoiding him. However, he could also sense that there was something new that Olivia wasn't telling him and it had felt that way since Halloween. Elliot was just glad that now he was back in New York, they would be able to talk again and clear everything up. He never remembered the early stages of his relationship with Kathy being like this, but then again, that was a whole different situation.

Elliot couldn't quite believe that he and Olivia had been in a relationship for just over a month now. Even though he'd been away for 2 weeks and they were keeping things secret about them, everything still felt so right. He was so looking forward to seeing Olivia again and was hoping he could find some time to just be alone with her now he was back. They really needed it.

* * *

Elliot was already at the café and had placed the orders for his mother and himself, by the time his mother arrived. She walked over and Elliot stood to greet her as he was rightly required to do so. He would be polite but keep the cold shoulder with her.  
"Welcome home my boy, how was the trip?" Bernie asked, starting the conversation.  
"It was good, long but good. However, I'm grateful that I have no plans to go anywhere else now till after New Years" Elliot explained. His schedule was completely free of trips outside of New York now, he had no major trips on the cards till the new year and he really intended to keep it that way. The New Year wasn't that far off now, but still, the longer he could stay home the better.  
"That's at least 2 months away? Surely you're going to be needed at the building site for the new hotel or somewhere else before then?" Bernie tried to clarify and Elliot just shook his head.  
"Nope, and I think after everything that happened whilst I was gone this time, I'm needed here more mother" Elliot replied.  
"I don't know what you're talking about, nothing happened, we were fine. The only slight hiccup was when your daughter decided she was going to put on a show when she didn't get her own way on Halloween" Bernie replied, Elliot couldn't believe she was going to blame all of this on Elizabeth.  
"and you were rude to her teacher" Elliot added.  
"I was not rude, I was protective, there is a difference darling"  
"Some would disagree with that. Mother, I want you to know that there is no one I would trust more to look after Elizabeth and Richard than Olivia and I do not appreciate you confronting her the way that you did. I especially do not like that you blamed the hotel incident on her. She didn't have anythgin to do with it" Elliot warned, he could feel his temper rising over this all but was trying to keep it all in check as they were in public.

"Olivia? You know her by her first name then? She's not just 'Miss Benson'?" Bernie remarked nad Elliot realised his slip of the tongue. Bernie was quick to pick that up and he had to think quickly.  
"Yes mother, as Olivia and I had been in frequent contact about Elizabeth and her learning, I found it better to be in communication by first name rather than simply referring to her as 'Miss Benson' all the time" Elliot justified.  
"You do realise that she put your children in danger that day? They could have been seriously hurt"  
"No they weren't, and you want to know why? Because Olivia protected them. She was simply in the wrong place at the wrong time but she put the children above herself, as she always does and made sure they were not hurt. Olivia had been in the hotel lobby, as she was returning home with the twins and this psycho, who I used to have working for me, attacked her out of jealousy. If you _really_ watched the video you would have seen that" Elliot answered.  
"I did watch the video, I also know about that horrible aftermath to the attack that you had with the twins, not sleeping and wetting the bed isn't common for their age. I strongly doubt you would want a woman who was part of the cause for that, around your children"  
"Mother, there is just so much about that situation you don't know and you don't know about the situation leading up to it either. However, I will not stand for you attacking Olivia like you did on Halloween. You were incredibly out of line and if you think I'm going to be taking my daughter out of Olivia's class or that school or trying to get her fired, you have another thing coming. You may feel that it is necessary or you may not want your grandchildren around her, which I don't understand why, but they're my children and I want them to spend as much time with her as they wish. So if you try anything, to hurt Olivia, or speak badly about her to the children or anyone - I won't speak to you again" Elliot warned and Bernie had to admit, she'd not seen this side of her son before and she knew he was very serious in his threat.

"I've never seen you get this protective of any of their other teachers? You barely even knew the name of their kindergarten teacher. So why is this one different?" Bernie asked, changing the topic slightly.  
"Olivia has done a lot for Elizabeth, she's really helped her improve and develop this sense that she can do it. That is something that for a long time Elizabeth didn't have, and Olivia has helped me see that I need to be around for my children, I need to be the father they deserve" Elliot explained, Bernie could see this fond side of Elliot when he mentioned Olivia, she couldn't help but wonder if there was something more going on. She hoped not, with everything she'd uncovered recently.  
"I just don't think that she's the kind of role model you want around Elizabeth with everything she's been through at such a young age. That teacher has a past-" Bernie started to explain.  
"How do you know about her past? How do you even know so much about her when you've barely spoken or spent time with her?" Elliot interrupted.  
"I have my sources..."  
"Mother"  
"No, all I'm saying is, that I would have though you would be more concerned over your children and who they spend their time with. Yet, you seem to have a blind spot when it comes to this woman  
"Olivia, is one of the only people that Elizabeth completely trusts and I can't be more grateful for that as I think she needs good female role models, considering her mother isn't around. So again, if you do anything to try and jeopardise that, or hurt Olivia in anyway - I won't stand for it and I mean that mother" Elliot warned once more. He didn't know what his mother actually knew about Olivia or what she was tryign to get at but he wouldn't tolerate these actions, especially if she came after Olivia in any way.

* * *

Elizabeth scanned the playground, holding tightly to this picture that she'd made her for grandmother as a thank you card. Miss Benson had helped her when she was feeling a little sad about her dad still being away. Miss Benson had got her think about all the things that her Nanny does for her and the fun times they have. Mrs Stabler was a pretty special woman, and despite what Olivia may personally think about her or things she's said. Olivia could tell that Elizabeth was glad to have her grandmother around, when her dad is away. The minute Elizabeth found her grandmother though, she squealed in delight and took off running without even saying goodbye. Olivia cautiously watched the little girl, as she always did and smiled softly when she saw who Elizabeth had spotted next to her grandmother. _He's home _Olivia thought before turning her attention to the last remaining students and a parent who was coming to talk to her.

* * *

"Daddy!" Elizabeth called out as she ran, full speed in the direction of her father, who was already kneeling down to catch her.  
"Hi Princess" Elliot greeted as he engulfed Elizabeth in his arms, pressing a soft kiss to her head.  
"You said, you are not home till tomorrow?" Elizabeth queried as she hugged her father close.  
"He wanted to surprise us!" Richard exclaimed as he stood next to Elliot and Elizabeth, equally excited over the fact that Elliot was home.  
"I like surprises" Elizabeth remarked and they made their movements to leave but Elizabeth froze in her spot.  
"I didn't say goodbye to Miss Benson" Elizabeth gasped and turned to check if her teacher was still there.  
"Oh that's alright honey, I'm sure she's seen you leave and you'll see her again tomorrow" Bernie tried to calm the little girl and continue leaving.  
"But nanny, Miss Benson always says it's nice to say goodbye when you leave and hello or good morning when you arrive. She says it's so she knows we're safe" Elizabeth tried to argue back with her grandmother in a typical matter-of-fact way. Elliot just stood by and watched the argument, he didn't mind if Elizabeth wanted to go and say goodbye, it would give him a chance to go over to Olivia. He knew she'd already seen him, as he knew how closely she watched her students leave in the afternoon.

"Well look, I think she's a little busy right now and you can just say an extra goodbye and hello tomorrow to make up for it" Bernie tried to bargain with the girl as she could see the teacher was talking with other parents right now.  
"But I want to say goodbye now" Elizabeth argued.  
"Lizzie, please don't do this now" Bernie tried to plead with the girl but Elliot could see Elizabeth wasn't having any of it. Elliot just shrugged when his mother looked at him, he wasn't getting involved with this right now as he had no issue with her daughter going back to say goodbye.  
"Nanny..."  
"Honey, if we go now, I was thinking we could go play at the park before heading home, play on the playground for a bit?" Bernie tried to bargain with Elizabeth, to get them to leave. Elliot honestly didn't understand why his mother was so against Elizabeth going back to say goodbye.  
"Can we go to the cake place again too?" Elizabeth asked, clearly knowing how to make a bargain in what she wanted.  
"Ooo yes, please nanny, can we?" Richard chimed in, cake was always the winner.  
"We can, if we leave right now as we still need to get home and get your homework finished later, for tomorrow" Bernie agreed and the children just nodded before the group moved in the direction of the car. Elliot took one final glance back to see Olivia watching them. He could see her smile softly at him and he smiled back. He was so glad to be home again, and he would make sure to see Olivia soon.

* * *

_**A/N: So there we have it, another chapter over – what did you think? Elliot really put his foot down with his mother in terms of Olivia, clearly showing how strongly he feels about her, could this be signs he's fallen in love with her? I have now mapped out exactly where this story is going, and how many chapters it will have left (don't worry, it's not ending just yet, as there is still so much to cover). But I've also starting floating an idea, on a sequel as there are a few things, raised in this story which won't be all tied up by the end. So my question is; whilst this story still has 10+ chapters to go, would you be interested in a sequel? **_

_**Let me know your thoughts on this chapter in the reviews, I love reading them all and they help with my motivation when I hit a block with this story. Of course, if you would prefer to send me a PM, my inbox is always open - I read those too. I am glad you are all loving this story and I aim to have another chapter out soon. In these uncertain times we're all facing, I hope you stay home (if you can), stay healthy and stay safe. **_  
_**Until next time ;)**_


	34. Lawyers

_**A/N: So, the idea of a sequel was a success then and I definitely have an idea of what I would want that sequel to explore but we won't be going there just yet. There are still a few loose ends to tie up with this story first. Enjoy!**_

**34\. Lawyers**

Once school had finished for the day, Olivia made a quick exit as she had to get to an important meeting with her lawyer this afternoon. Lewis, was her lawyer for this custody case with Chloe and he had called her during her lunch break. The call was a complete surprise for Olivia but Lewis was requesting to meet with Olivia as soon as possible, which Olivia was suspecting to be about bad news. Olivia was early, so she took a seat in the reception area outside of the office and let her mind wander on all the events of today. She thought about Elliot and how excited Elizabeth was today to see her father there to pick her up from school. But even from across the playground, Olivia could see that Elliot looked tired. It was clear to her that the past few weeks had taken a toll on him, he must have been working hard when he was away. She felt compelled to walk over and welcome him back but she also knew better than to do that. So, she was in a way very grateful when another parent came over to talk to her about their child. She had noticed Elliot look back and smile at her as they were leaving though, which she just had to return.

She'd hoped that when she checked her phone on the way to this meeting, she'd seen a message from him or something but she didn't. Olivia knew it was because he was busy with his family, after only recently returning from a trip, part of her had still hoped though. Olivia had wanted to send a message but didn't want to interrupt that family time or take his attention away from the kids, so she didn't. They would talk when the timing was right.  
"Olivia?" Lewis called as he appeared in the doorway to his office, across from where Olivia was sitting.  
"Now, I want to thank you for coming in so promptly. I wanted to meet with you as unfortunately there have been a few developments in your custody case" Lewis explained once they were inside his office and Olivia had taken a seat across from him at his desk. Olivia knew this wasn't going to end well but she still hoped for the best.

"Brian is asking to see Chloe. Infact he's demanding that he get time with his daughter before the court case and the court is inclined to provide him some permission to do so. Especially as this will give specific evidence towards the type of father Brian would be with Chloe" Lewis continued to explain, Olivia felt like she wanted to be sick. This was her work nightmare actually coming true, she never wanted her daughter to go with such a monster. _He can never be near her_ Olivia thought, remembering the vow she had made on the day that Chloe was born and she held her daughter for the first time.

"No, please don't let this happen" Olivia remarked.  
"Well, there may be a few complications to his request, which may allow it to be stopped. The first obviously being the fact that Chloe is so little and can't go unsupervised, not that the court would allow her to, even if she was older, due to the fact that Brian's in prison. The second complication is obviously that you have an order of protection against Brian, meaning you can't be the one to take her. Now This order wouldn't affect you two being in the court room together, as long as you feel comfortable in doing so and he stays to his side of the room but it does affect the wish to see Chloe and who can take her" Lewis explained to which Olivia nodded, in times like this Olivia was glad her order of protection still stood.  
"I...I don't have any family here" Olivia stated.  
"Is there anyone outside of the family who is close enough to Chloe that she would feel comfortable going with? Lewis asked and Olivia didn't think she could send Chloe with her nanny and there was no way she would send Elliot. Olivia trusted Elliot with Chloe and knew he'd look after the little girl like she was his own. But she didn't trust Elliot to be in the same place as Brian, not with him knowing exactly what Brian did to her and all the hurt he caused her. If she put Brian and Elliot in the same closed space together, alone – someone would end up hurt if not worse.  
"No, I could possibly get family here if necessary but I would need time, as they live out of state" Olivia suggested, knowing her father would fly in if she asked him to for this. She knew her father would do absolutely anything to help where he could.  
"Leave it with me..." Lewis commented as he wrote something down on a notepad and then turned conversation to other upcoming legal matters.

* * *

_**5 missed calls – Elliot 3 **_Olivia read the notification when she left Lewis's office. Clearly her hopes of Elliot getting in touch soon had come true but sadly she'd not been able to take any of these calls as she'd been with her lawyer.  
**Elliot: Call me when you get a chance? Please? **Olivia read the message, clearly Elliot had messaged her when she hadn't picked up the calls. She didn't bother responding to the message, instead she picked up her phone and called him. But when she did, she got sent straight to his message bank. _So much for calling when I had the chance _Olivia thought to herself before leaving a message for Elliot to call her when he got the chance. Looks like they were going to be playing this game of phone tag for a little bit longer.

The meeting with Lewis today had brought up a lot of stuff for Olivia to think about. Especially as it looked like she would have to go to court twice now, once with Dani and once with Brian. She didn't' want Brian anywhere near her daughter, especially when he'd been the reason that almost was no Chloe in the first place. Brian had violently attacked her one night, after coming home drunk, right around the time that Olivia was in early stages of her pregnancy with Chloe. It had been shortly after Brian had basically raped her, a few weeks before hand.  
Now that same man had found out about his child and wanted to be her father. Olivia just couldn't trust that Chloe would be safe with him. Not to mention that there was no way that she would even think about sending her daughter to prison to visit with him. Olivia knew every little girl needed and deserved a father, she knew from just how much her own father meant to her. But she did not want Chloe knowing exactly who her biological father was, if she could help it. Olivia knew that she would have to work this out on her own.

* * *

_FLASHBACK_  
_"Do you want children?" Olivia asked, as she and Brian walked down the mainstreet of the town they were currently living in. They'd been out for brunch and had passed a park with children on their return. This park had caught Olivia's eye and started a thought process. _  
_"Now?" Brian asked, a clear look of confusion in his eyes. _  
_"Not now, one day. Do you want to have children one day?" Olivia tried to rephrase._  
_"Uhhh, I've never really thought of myself being a father type of guy" Brian declined. _  
_"That could change..." Olivia replied, trying to work out whether this man whom she had known for the longest time and loved, would be the man she could truly settle down with someday. She wanted children, she had always wanted children, she had always wanted to be a mother._  
_"I don't think it will...Children are such a commitment and I've never fancied being a parent. I don't know how you even want to teach them all day like you do" Brian remarked as he placed a soft kiss on the side of her head. Olivia knew now not to push it any further. She knew that if she continued to push this topic then things could get ugly and she wanted to avoid that at all costs. She just couldn't shake this feeling of wanting to be a mother more than anything else in the world._  
_END FLASHBACK_

Olivia lay staring up at the ceiling, reliving past conversations with Brian in regards to the children after today's discussion with Lewis. Brian had told her that he never wanted to be a father, and yet he was going to fight her for access and custody of Chloe? The same daughter that he'd unknowingly almost killed and told her that he never wanted to have. Olivia didn't understand this at all and hoped that Lewis managed to find a way to stop him. Olivia couldn't help but wish she had Elliot's advice on all of this right now. But she knew if she called him, then she'd wake him and that wasn't exactly a good idea. But part of her just really wanted to talk to him, he could make it all make sense, surely. Olivia picked up her phone from her bedside table and decided a text message would be a better starting point than a call. If Elliot was asleep, it may not wake him up, where as a call would.  
**Olivia: Hey, are you awake? **Olivia quickly typed and waited to see if she got a response. A few short minutes later, she felt her phone vibrating on the bed next to her – it wasn't a text though, Elliot was calling.

* * *

"Hello?" Olivia greeted. The minute she picked up the phone, Elliot could tell something was wrong by the way her voice sounded.  
"Hey, I though calling would be easier than texting back. Are you ok?" Elliot asked.  
"I didn't wake you, did I?" Olivia replied, more concerned that she'd woken him than telling him about what was bothering her.  
"No, though even if you did, I wouldn't mind. What's going on with you though? I thought you would be well asleep by now?" Elliot asked.  
"I wish...But after today, I don't think my brian is going to shut off...Brian, my ex, is fighting me for custody of Chloe" Olivia explained and Elliot couldn't believe it. They had been dealt another blow in all of this mess.  
"What?"  
"Brian wants to see Chloe, he wants to be involved in her life now he knows she exists"  
"Like hell that's going to happen" Elliot remarked.  
"Well sadly, the law may allow it. He is allowed visitation with Chloe before the court date or at least, he'd trying to make it happen" Olivia explained and Elliot could hear how uncomfortable Olivia was right now with all of this.  
"We can stop this, we're not going to let him anywhere near her" Elliot tried to comfort Olivia over the phone, emphasising the 'we' so she knew that he was going to help her through this.  
"My lawyer says that there are a few complications to his request, which may be used to stop him from seeing Chloe before court. But he's looking into it...Brian never wanted children, I don't know why he's suddenly changed his mind in terms of Chloe now. He's not the kind of man I would ever let near Chloe...I can't stop now, I can't lose her" Olivia started rambling.

"You won't...Chloe isn't going anywhere but with you and I'm going to help you make sure things stay that way. Tomorrow, I'll have my legal team look into this and see if Brian really has a claim to her. Liv...Olivia, don't worry we're going to get through this, just like we're going to get through everything, together" Elliot comforted, he instantly regretted the slip of his tongue in calling her Liv, he just thought it was nice nickname for her.  
"You called me Liv?" Olivia replied, clearly she'd not listened to the rest of the message, if that was what she picked up on.  
"Yes sorry, slip of tongue...won't happen again" Elliot started to back pedal.  
"You can call me Liv if you want to. But thank you El, for looking into this" Olivia replied.  
"Anything for you, you know that" Elliot said, she'd now called him 'El' but he wasn't going to bring it up, he liked the sound of it when she called him El, he could get used to that.

"Alright, lets change topic for a moment. Are you busy Friday night? Can I take you to dinner?" Elliot asked after a few minutes  
"No, I mean, I'm free and dinner sounds good" Olivia replied which made Elliot smile.  
"Great! I'll pick you up. I think you and I are overdue for a bit of time together"  
"Sounds good! I'm looking forward to it already"  
"Me too, now I think it's time we both got some sleep. I'll see you tomorrow beautiful" Elliot remarked as he tried to stifle a yawn.  
"Goodnight El" Olivia said.  
"I just have to say, I like the way you call me that. Goodnight Liv, sleep well" Elliot farewelled once more before the pair ended the call and settled down for the night.

_**A/N: Now we never thought Brian was just going to go quietly did we? However, he never wanted to be a father so I wonder what has changed and will he actually get to see Chloe? Surely not? Right? Guess you'll just have to keep reading.**_  
_**Next Chapter: Elliot meets with Detective Amaro (I wonder why?) and we have some alone time between Elliot and Olivia (Date night no 2?). **_

_**Let me know what you thought of this chapter by leaving a review, thank you for all the reviews last chapter and welcome to my new readers who have been joining the story recently. I'm glad you want to read my work! I'm trying to get into a routine of giving you a new chapter every week in these uncertain times. But as always, wherever you are I hope that you are staying safe and healthy! The world may look a little bleak at the moment but I know that together, we're going to get through it all. **_  
_**Until next time ;D**_


	35. Three Little Words, Eight Little Letters

**35\. Three Little Words, 8 Little Letters**

Friday couldn't have come quick enough, Elliot was ready for a night out with Olivia and time alone for just the two of them. Olivia on the other hand, was just glad that it was going to be the weekend soon. She was ready to have a few days away from school and day care to just spend time with Chloe. She hoped that maybe this weekend, there would be time to be with Elliot and the kids again but she wasn't entirely sure if they were prepared for that, when his mother was still in town. Tonight though, was going to be all about them.

Elliot wasn't entirely sure where he was going to take Olivia for dinner but thankfully, he still had time to work that out. He didn't know exactly what type of cuisine she liked either, so he couldn't use that as a starting point. He didn't want to be the one to pick something that she didn't like though as that wouldn't lead to a good evening. When he thought about it, there was still so much to Olivia that he didn't know. He knew about her past, or at least the bits she'd told him. But that was really it as he only knew what Olivia had felt comfortable telling him.

When he dropped Elizabeth and Richard off at school, he made sure to make a quick stop by Elizabeth's classroom. He'd been hoping to see Olivia and ask about her favourite cuisine, but she'd not been there. Clara told him that she was in a meeting and it would likely run till the time school started and she could take a message. Elliot had declined the offer, simply saying that he would talk to her later, it wasn't urgent.  
**El: What type of food do you like? **Elliot sent Olivia a message as he walked back to the car. He knew she likely wouldn't get it till later but at least this way he may be able to get some kind of answer before tonight on where he should take her. Now though, he had other places he really needed to be and things to get done. He would come back to this later.

* * *

The next stop on Elliot's journey, was the police precinct. He had an appointment with Detective Amaro and he didn't want to be late. Elliot was meeting with the detective to follow up on how everything was proceeding and to make sure there was nothing else he still needed to do before court. He would not let Dani get away with what she did but he was getting to the point where he just wanted it all to be over with, so they could finally move on.  
The minute he walked into the precinct and said his name to the officer at the desk, detective Amaro quickly came out to the waiting area and greeted him before taking him back to an interview room where they could talk.  
"Elliot, so good to see you again" Detective Amaro greeted properly when they entered the interview room.  
"Thank you for agreeing to see me on such short notice" Elliot replied.  
"Anytime, I'm guessing you came to talk about your case though?" Detective Amaro asked, it was really the only realistic reasoning behind Elliot's arrival.  
"Yes, I wanted to come down and see if we're any closer to a court date yet? Or if there is any chance we really didn't have to go to court?" Elliot asked and Detective Amaro took a deep breath before responding. Elliot knew this type of reaction meant it wasn't good news he was about to hear.

"Yes, well...I have some good news and I have some bad news in relation to that. I don't know how much you and Olivia have talked about this or what she has told you. But Dani had the conditions laid out to avoid court and they couldn't be met which has resulted in no deal being able to be made and also a second court case for Olivia separately with an additional party. So that means that we will be taking this case to court unfortunately. Now, as it involves such a big name like yourself, I believe that Olivia's legal team are really trying to fast track the processing time to get this to court but we don't have a date as of yet. There is good news though. Given how young your children are, they will not have to go to court or testify to what happened. We have the video from their statements from a few weeks ago which will be more than enough. So, you won't really have to be in court at all unless you want to. The only person who will really be required is Olivia as the charges involve her" Detective Amaro explained and Elliot nodded. There was no way that he would actually miss being in that court room though as he would be there with Olivia. He was glad that his children didn't need to go anymore and he could save them that stress.

"Well, I suppose that is a small relief, as I really didn't want ot have them experience that if they didn't need to" Elliot replied.  
"Of course, not and most cases that I've worked with and involve children, haven't required them to be in the court room as everyone agrees that it's a big stress for them. I just hope this will all be resolved for you soon" Detective Amaro said as he started to escort Elliot out to the entrance again.  
"That would be ideal. Thanks for the update" Elliot replied as he shook Detective Amaro's hand.  
"No problem, if you have any more questions or concerns, please feel free to give me a call, you have my number" Detective Amaro replied before the pair went their separate ways. This meeting hadn't given him all the news he'd been wanting to hear but it had made progress and that was something.

* * *

Friday's were a long day for Olivia, but today felt especially long as she'd had two meetings before school and a late-night call with Elliot last night. This wasn't helped by her lack of sleep and a million things to get done. But the fact it was lunch time now meant that there was only a short time left in the school day and then she could relax. Well, relax as much as she could with a toddler and a date tonight. Olivia was really looking forward to the date with Elliot tonight, being able to catch up with him properly after his busy trip away and spend time together. She had discovered one slight problem though, he said he was going to pick her up and he didn't know where she lived. She'd intentionally kept that from him but was now the time to let it go? Was she in the position with him now that she could be comfortable with Elliot knowing where and how she lived? It certainly wasn't as lavish as he was used to, but she didn't have a bank account as big as he surely did or the same income. There was no way she could afford such a nice penthouse that he lived in and if Elliot really wanted to be with her, then surely, he'd accept that.

**Liv: I like pretty much anything really. Also, I realised last night when you said you'd pick me up tonight, you don't actually know where I live? **Olivia quickly responded to Elliot's message on her break.  
**El: Ah, yes that's a problem. Would you possibly mind changing that? **Elliot replied, almost instantly. Olivia hesitated for a moment more before typing out her address and sending it through to Elliot.  
**El: Thank you xx **Elliot replied once again and Olivia just smiled before sliding her phone back into her pocket as her lunch break was almost over. _Only just over an hour to go _Olivia thought as she made her way out to the staff room and back to the classroom once more.

* * *

Elliot stood on the doorstep to Olivia's building. He had got her address earlier today and he'd buzzed up to the number she'd told him was her apartment. He'd expected to be able to make his way inside and greet her at the door, but she'd stopped him outside, telling him that instead of coming up, she'd come down. He still didn't understand her hesitancy behind him going to her place, but the fact she'd let him pick her up was a start and a start he'd take. He'd not turned up empty handed tonight though, he had brought a bouquet of flowers for her, just like any decent gentleman would.

However, his breath was taken away the minute Olivia appeared towards the door, she looked stunning. She was wearing a deep blue dress and Elliot could tell she'd curled her hair. Elliot really liked her with curled hair like this, down flowing over her shoulders. He was definitely one lucky man tonight, to be the one again with her on his arm. Olivia smiled back at him softly and Elliot knew he'd been spotted checking her out. But he had to admit, he couldn't help it when she looked that good and surely, she'd been checking him out too.

"Hey" Olivia greeted as she opened the door.  
"Hey, these are for you" Elliot replied, handing Olivia the flowers which she took graciously.  
"They're beautiful thank you" Olivia accepted.  
"Just like you" Elliot flirted which he knew was the reason for Olivia's slight smile as she breathed in the fragrance of the flowers.  
"You realise, I'm going to have to go back upstairs again now and put these away. Was that the intention?" Olivia asked, choosing not to reply to his sweet comment.  
"Well, I had been intending to meet you at your door...so we wouldn't of had this problem. But I can wait here if you want to go back and put them in water" Elliot replied to which Olivia thanked him and disappeared inside again to put her flowers in her apartment. Once she returned, the couple made their way to the car and Elliot gave the driver the nod, he clearly already knew where they were going tonight.

* * *

Tonight's cuisine of choice was Italian, to follow up on the French that had been their first date. Elliot had booked a table in the restaurant right down by the water, where he already knew the owner. The restaurant had a beautiful outlook over the water and Elliot made sure to make it clear that he wanted the booking to be in a secluded area, to which the owner agreed. The pair were shown to a table by the window that overlooked the water and Olivia couldn't quite believe how beautiful it was. Elliot was really going all out for her on these dates and she was very touched by it. Once the drinks had been ordered and the pair had decided on what they were going to get to share, the waiter disappeared and Elliot took Olivia's hand in his over the table.  
"This is an absolutely beautiful spot" Olivia said as she stared out at the view through the window. She could tell this restaurant was very popular in the warmer weather as it would be beautiful to sit outside and eat in the warmer weather.  
"A beautiful spot for a beautiful lady" Elliot replied as Olivia just smiled at him in return. Elliot was really big on the compliments, which made Olivia's heart soar more than it ever had before. He knew the best way to bring a smile to her face and make her feel good about herself. She couldn't say that about other men she'd been with.

"So, how's Chloe going? I feel like we've not really spoken about her much lately, always about my kids" Elliot asked when the drinks had arrived. The pair spent most of the time since arriving enjoying the view and each other's company, with a few kisses in between. Elliot knew that every time they'd spoken whilst he was away, they had mainly spoken about his children or how their respective days were. They hadn't spoken about Chloe and Elliot really felt a connection to the little girl, so he wanted to make sure he asked about the little girl and spoke about her with Olivia too. Chloe was just as special and just as important as his twins and she deserved to be talked and thought about.  
"She's doing really well thank you. I can't quite believe it's only a couple of months now till she's going to be a big 2-year-old. But she's really starting to show that toddler behaviour too. She's developed quite the personality with her talking and will ask a million questions about everything you tell her" Olivia replied as Elliot saw her eyes sparkle in the thought of her daughter.  
"I remember those days"  
"Since the weather is getting rather cold now though, we can't really get out as much as I'd like us to. So, I'm having to find all these new ways to entertain her indoors where I can – which with her endless energy, is a challenge"  
"Have you taken her to any indoor play centre type things yet? Lizzie and Dickie love them and I know a few that have sections for younger children too" Elliot asked.  
"I haven't, but sounds like it could be fun" Olivia replied, she'd never even head of a type of indoor playground for children before.  
"We could, go together sometime?" Elliot suggested but noticed Olivia's hesitation to the suggestion. A child play centre, where there are lots of people and children around – someone might know her and notice her with him.  
"I know of one, it's just north in the city, it's quite big and the twins love it. I doubt anyone we know, would go that far when there is another one closer, we should have no problems" Elliot added, trying to get through to Olivia that they could make this trip work. Olivia took a deep breath, trying to decide if she could really agree with this. She did want to spend more time with Elliot and the twins where possible, but was this the way? And what about Bernie?

"Without your mother?" Olivia asked which made Elliot laugh a little, he definitely wouldn't be bringing his mother if he was going out with Olivia and Chloe. That would simply cause too much chaos.  
"Without my mother. I don't really want her around when I'm with you" Elliot remarked as he gave Olivia's hand a squeeze.  
"Good. No offense but neither do I" Olivia added which caused Elliot to laugh again.  
"She knows where she stands with you now though, I made things very clear to her and I don't see there being anymore problems" Elliot replied.  
"My hero" Olivia teased as she leaned in closer to him, lips just barely touching.  
"Always" Elliot replied, before closing the very small gap and sealing his lips over hers in a soft but passionate kiss.

* * *

Dinner was incredible, yet again Elliot had chosen a fantastic restaurant and refused to let Olivia even contribute to the meal. He then helped her put her coat on over her dress, before they went outside to the car. Winter was definitely on it's way, as the weather in New York had taken a dive in temperature over this past week and a winter wardrobe was becoming a necessity.  
"Thank you for dinner" Olivia remarked as the pair sat in the back of the car and the driver started heading in a homeward direction.  
"Your welcome, you don't need to thank me though" Elliot replied.  
"Well, tomorrow is my treat" Olivia replied, she was determined, if they went out tomorrow to this playcentre, which they ha talked about doing over dinner, she would be paying for him.  
"What are we doing tomorrow?" Elliot teased, he already knew where this conversation was going but he wasn't going to make it easy.  
"The child play centre? Did you not want to go tomorrow? I th-"  
"Relax, the play centre tomorrow sounds perfect. Don't worry baby, I'm just teasing" Elliot gave her hand that he was holding across the backseat of the car a slight squeeze. He was never going to not be teasing where possible. But that was part of him that Olivia really liked, she loved his humour.  
"Baby?" Olivia questioned  
"Should I not call you baby?" Elliot asked, suddenly starting to panic to which Olivia just broke into a smile. She didn't mind what he called her.  
"You can call me whatever you want – just make sure it's clean" Olivia teased before leaning in and kissing Elliot. _She's going to be the death of me_ Elliot thought but it was death he could take.

"You know, we've made it through almost an entire night out without mentioning anything about Dani or the case" Olivia stated after the couple had broken apart from the kiss.  
"Well almost...why'd you have to bring it up?" Elliot questioned, leaning back against the headrest of the seat. He'd been hoping that tonight would go without mentioning Dani.  
"El, I'm proud of us" Olivia remarked giving his hand a squeeze. Elliot had to admit, he liked the way she called him El and he wanted it to be her pet name for him, and only hers.  
"Soon enough, everything will be over and done with and we can just focus on us. You, me and the kids – all three of them" Elliot clarified.  
"I like the sound of that"  
"Me too, now can we not talk about any of that for the rest of the night? I don't want the thought of her or your ex ruining tonight"  
"Now who's the one to bring it up?" Olivia teased which caused Elliot just to roll his eyes. She had a point but he wasn't going to bite.  
"Ok fair call, but I have a better idea...How about we just don't talk?" Elliot questioned before leaning over and kissing Olivia softly. Her kisses were like some kind of drug to him and he was going to steal as many as he could at every opportunity.  
"I like this idea better" Olivia replied before the lips were locked again. They stayed like this, almost the entire remainder of the drive back to Olivia's apartment. There was underlying heat in the kiss but neither were pushed to act on it just yet.

"I love you" Elliot said softly as the pair pulled back and Elliot looked Olivia straight in the eyes. Olivia was taken by surprise and didn't know how to respond.  
"It's ok, you don't have to say it back. I just...I just wanted you to know how I feel about you" Elliot quickly dismissed.  
"I love you too and this past month, despite all the extra challenges, has been the best month I've had in a very long time' Olivia replied with a slight smile.  
"I couldn't agree more" Elliot replied before stealing another kiss once again. He loved her and she loved him, this was progress and things could only get better from here.

* * *

_**A/N: They've finally said it, they've finally admitted to being in love with each other! I mean, we all knew they were but it's important that they verbalise it. Next chapter: Family play date and a court date. What could this mean? Hmm guess you'll have to wait and see. But what I want to know now is, did you like this chapter? I personally was very happy with it and really liked the little banter between Elliot and Olivia, done in a way that I think is very them. But let me know your thoughts by leaving a review, I love to read them all and they really help with motivation – when I don't have the motivation to write or am stuck with an idea. So, let me know your thoughts on this chapter in a review and hopefully I'll have another update for you all soon. As always, I hope you are all staying home (if possible), staying safe and knowing that we'll all get out of this soon, things will get better soon. **_  
_**Until Next Time :D**_


	36. Family Play Date

_**A/N: Alright Alright…I know it's been a LONG time since I've updated and for that, I'm deeply sorry. But to be completely honest with you, the situation in the world right now has truly thrown a spanner in the works and I lost all motivation to write and edit. I sat down at the computer numerous times to try write and edit and get something out to you all but nothing was coming out right. However, I have managed to find some part of my mojo back, and have a new chapter for you all…To make up for my long absence, this chapter is a LONG chapter, and I suspect the new few will be too. So buckle in!**_

**Chapter 36: Family Play Date**

Saturday was an early morning in the Stabler household. Elizabeth and Richard had gone to bed early last night under the supervision of Bernie. But Elliot had not got home till late and gone to bed even later, after his evening with Olivia. He had to admit, he was feeling it now though, as he sat in the lounge room with Elizabeth and Richard, watching cartoons on the TV whilst Richard was also playing with Lego on the floor. The twins may have been up at 7:30am this morning and Elliot felt like this was too early. Elliot also hated to think how early Chloe might have been up this morning and what time Olivia was up from. Thoughts like this made Elliot wonder what could be in store for the future. It gave him hope to think about what mornings with Olivia and Chloe as well as the twins would be like. Elliot really enjoyed the thought of spending lazy mornings in the penthouse, with all three children playing together, as well as any other they may or may not have in the future. He would be snuggled up with Olivia on the couch, just watching over it all.

Elliot and Olivia had agreed that they wouldn't rush to go out this morning, due to getting home late last night. But they would touch base when everyone was awake and in the process of getting ready to go out. Elliot hadn't told the twins about the plans just yet but he planned to. He also hadn't told his mother of the day's plans, but she was yet to even surface.  
"Daddy..." Elizabeth spoke up, drawing her father away from his thoughts about the future and what he hoped that would entail.  
"Yes princess?" Elliot replied, looking down at his daughter who was currently snuggled into his side.  
"What are we doing today? Do you have to work?" Elizabeth asked. It was as if she'd been reading her father's mind as he'd just been thinking about telling them what the plan for today was.  
"It's the weekend, so no I don't have to work today. But I was thinking we could go out and do something fun all together" Elliot explained.  
"Like what?"  
"Well, I was thinking that sine it's cold out today, it's not really the playing outside kind of weather. But there is this play centre that I know you both like – what do you say to us going there today?"  
"Cosmic Playland?" Richard asked, joining the conversation.  
"No, not cosmic. This is the one just north of the city, the forest one we've been to before" Elliot corrected.  
"Ooohh, I know that one! Lizzie, that's the one that we went to with Dani that time when Daddy was away on business, and you had Sally come too" Richard tried to explain. Elliot could have sworn he'd been to this playcentre with the twins too but maybe they'd gone other times without him.

"I don't want to go there with Dani" Elizabeth replied, a look of terror on her face, it was clear that woman had caused some very deep scars to emerge.  
"No no, don't worry, you won't be. It'll be just you, me and Dickie today – with possibly another friend but I'm pretty sure you'll like them" Elliot comforted.  
"No nanny?" Richard asked.  
"Nope, nanny is not coming today. I think after looking after you two so well, she deserves a day away from you and besides, I want a day with you two and just me" Elliot remarked as he tickled Elizabeth from her spot next to him. He continued to tickle to the point that Elizabeth was squealing in laughter on the couch and wriggling to get away but not wanting to. Elliot just loved the sound of his children's laughter and them having fun, especially when he was the cause of this laughter.  
"Ok but if we're going to go, then we need to get dressed and ready and make sure that we've had breakfast too, ok?" Elliot asked as they started to get themselves together.  
"Ok Daddy" Twins echoed in response  
"Your clothes are already laid out on your beds Lizzie and Dickie" Bertie, the housekeeper remarked as she entered the room in response to all the laughter. Both children thanked her and ran off to get ready whilst Elliot thanked Bertie too and made his way to the kitchen.

* * *

**El: So, the twins are on board, they don't exactly know it's you coming with us today but they want to go to the playground regardless **Elliot texted as Olivia came out of the bathroom after getting ready to head out for the day. She had been up for hours with Chloe. They'd already had breakfast and Chloe was dressed, so all Olivia had to do was finish getting herself ready for the day. She was looking forward to taking Chloe to this indoor playcentre with Elliot and the would be the perfect day out for everyone, as Olivia knew this place would surely have activities for all ages with the children, as well as being somewhere that, according to Elliot, wasn't close to where they may run into people they know. Olivia still had her concerns about this, but she knew that she had to start relaxing a little about being spotted out with Elliot and the children. There was no way this relationship could work successfully if it was a secret forever, Olivia didn't want it to be. Olivia wanted to be able to go out and do things with Elliot and the twins, without worrying about any possible backlash or boundaries being crossed. Of course things would be a lot easier for them if she wasn't Elizabeth's teacher, but Olivia didn't want to change that just yet.

**Liv: Sounds good! We're pretty much ready to go whenever you are. Chloe has been bouncing off the walls since the early hours this morning **Olivia quickly responded, which was true as Chloe had been up since about 6am. Even thought it was a saturday and they could sleep in, Chloe never did and thus no matter what time Olivia went to bed, she always knew she would be up early the following day. _The joys of a toddler _Olivia thought to herself as she watched her little girl playing with the toys on the floor.  
**El: Alright well we'll pick you up in about – half an hour? **Elliot replied and Olivia didn't know how that was going to work. She was hesitant to accept his offer, but she knew this was just Elliot trying to be a gentleman. However, she did worry about how they were all going to fit in a single car. 3 Stabler's, herself and Chloe plus the driver meant there was 6 people, which wouldn't fit in one standard car. Olivia decided this conversation would be easier to have by calling Elliot rather than texting back and forth.

* * *

"Hey baby" Elliot greeted as he answered her call.  
"So you're really sticking with baby then? I see how it is" Olivia teased.  
"You said that I could call you whatever I wanted as long as it was clean" Elliot reminded and Olivia knew he had a point, as she had said that.  
"Ok fair point. Now, I wanted to say that you don't need to pick Chloe and I up, we can meet you there today" Olivia got straight to the point.  
"But...I want to" Elliot protested.  
"We wont all fit in one car safely, especially with Chloe's carseat"  
"Yes we will"  
"El, no we wont. There is 3 of you and 2 of us plus your driver, which makes 6 and your car only fits 5" Olivia explained her thinking.  
"My town car does, my SUC fits up to 7 or maybe 8 with a squeeze. Or alternatively, I just won't bring my driver? My mother will likely need him more today and the town car suits her. So I'll drive, bring the SUV and pick you, Chloe and her carseat up" Elliot explained and Olivia knew she couldn't refuse this offer or come up with a good excuse to refuse again.  
"Alright you win, you've clearly thought this through"  
"That I have. Now Lizzie, Dickie and I will see you outside your place in about half an hour. I'll buzz when we're there" Elliot replied to which Olivia agreed before the pair ended the call, they would see each other soon enough.

* * *

Olivia had packed a bag for Chloe, remembering everything this little girl would need for a day out and made sure to get her carseat out of the closet. As she didn't have a car, there were very few occasions where Olivia actually needed Chloe's carseat but today would be one of those occasions.  
"Where going mommy?" Chloe asked as she looked at all the things which Olivia had ready by the door. There was a bag and carseat for Chloe, their coats and Olivia's bag with a few extra things that they might need today.  
"We're going to a playground with lots of new and cool things to play on" Olivia answered.  
"Yayyyy" Chloe squealed with delight.  
"I thought you might like that and we're going with some friends. Do you remember my friend Elliot? Who we saw at the park when we were feeding the ducks? And his children Lizzie and Dickie"  
"Izzzie!" Chloe echoed, she was still getting the hang of her l sound so Olivia smiled at the miss pronunciation of Lizzie's name.  
"That's right little girl, Lizzie! Well, Lizzie and Dickie are going to come to the playground with us too. Elliot is going to come and pick us up soon and we'll all go in his car"  
"Broom Broom" Chloe echoed, making the sound of the car but before Olivia had a chance to respond, she felt her phone buzzing in her pocket. She expected that it was Elliot telling her they were here, though she thought he said 'buzz' as in her front door system. Instead, when Olivia pulled out her phone, she saw the caller ID read 'Lewis - Lawyer", this couldn't be good.

"Hello, Olivia speaking" Olivia greeted as she picked up the phone and turned away from watching Chloe briefly.  
"Hi Olivia, it's Lewis. Do you have a few spare minutes to talk?" Lewis asked, Olivia was surprised that he was working on a Saturday.  
"Well, I'm about to head out shortly but sure, I can talk for a few minutes. What's up?" Olivia replied, looking over to Chloe again.  
"I just wanted to call and give you a heads up that we've set the date for your custody court date. It will be on November 19th" Lewis explained, and Olivia checked her calendar on the wall by the fridge, where she kept all the important dates.  
"That's…a week on Thursday"  
"Yes. Now I'm still working out this deal about Brian meeting Chloe before the case but if that's to go ahead, it'll be on the Tuesday before and then on the actual court date, Chloe needs to be there but she won't be in the room. She will go with a social worker whilst it's in session. Do you have time to meet this week to discuss everything further? There are more things I need to discuss too" Lewis asked, and Olivia had to think about it for a minute.  
"Uhh, I can do Wednesday afternoon? After school?" Olivia suggested and Lewis made the booking in his system for their meeting, just as the door buzzer went. Elliot was here.  
"Alright, I'll see you on Wednesday Olivia and I'll call again if I have updates before then" Lewis confirmed.  
"Thank you for the call Lewis, have a good weekend" Olivia said before disconnecting the call and felt like her legs were going to give out. She had a court date now; things were finally going to be moving forward. She didn't like the sound of Chloe still having to meet with Brian though, but she trusted Lewis would get that dealt with too. Now was not the time to be worrying about everything like that though, as she had a day with Elliot planned.

* * *

By the time the group got to the play centre, everyone was ready to get out of the car. Elizabeth and Richard had been excited that they were going out today with Oliva and her daughter. Elizabeth had even wanted Olivia to sit in the back with them on the way to the playcentre. But Elliot was very quick to intervene to that idea, stating that not only was he not a chauffer and that they wouldn't all fit in the back, he needed a passenger next to him. Olivia had smiled at this intervention as she knew that Elliot just wanted her next to him up front. Elizabeth wasn't happy but Olivia managed to resolve this conflict by giving Elizabeth the very important task of sitting next to Chloe and keeping her entertained. By the end of the drive to the playcentre – the two were as close as anything. Richard had been a little withdrawn from everyone, as he was focused on the book he was reading.

Due to the traffic on the roads, the drive was a little longer than expected but thankfully it ended before everyone got too fussy. Elliot had noticed that Olivia was a little quiet on the drive to the play centre today and he knew something was on her mind. He couldn't quite explain how he knew this, but he just knew that from her demeanour when she came out of her apartment building to greet him and head out, something was up with her. He trusted that she'd tell him what was going on and he hoped that it was nothing to serious.

* * *

Once inside the playcentre, Elizabeth and Richard were quick to rush off and play. Chloe had tried to rush off after them but Olivia quickly scooped her up and put a stop to that. She was too little at the moment to play on the same kinds of things that the Stabler twins were going to. But Olivia had to admit it was cute that Chloe so easily wanted to follow the other two.  
"Aren't you worried about your two?" Olivia asked, not against the fact that Elliot was coming with her, but she'd thought he would want to keep an eye on the twins and not come to the toddler area with her and Chloe.  
"They are pretty good at looking after each other and checking in with me at regular intervals, to know where I am. Besides, I told them before we picked you up, that when we got here they could go play but had to make sure to check in with me every half an hour and Dickie set a timer on his watch" Elliot explained and Olivia had to admit, she was impressed with their organisation of everything. He gave his kids the space and freedom to play but still kept a cautious eye on them.

"How did your mother take the fact you were going out today with the kids and not her?" Olivia asked, changing the topic to another hard topic. Elliot really didn't want to talk about this, he just wanted to talk about Olivia and Chloe as that was a much better topic.  
"I left her a note" Elliot stated rather bluntly.  
"What?" Olivia was confused.  
"She wasn't up before we had to leave and I wasn't going to go and wake her to start World War 3. So I left her a note, explaining where we were, when we'd be back and that the car was hers for the day, with the driver"  
"And what time did you say you'd be back?"  
"I said that we'd be back probably around late afternoon/ early evening. But if we're not then it's ok, she'll survive" Elliot remarked as they walked around behind Chloe who was heading for the equipment for her age.  
"You really are playing with fire, aren't you?" Olivia smiled, she couldn't believe what Elliot was doing just to spend time with her and Chloe"  
"Maybe, but you're worth it" Elliot smiled which made Olivia roll her eyes and smile – this man really was one of a kind.

* * *

As the hours passed, Chloe grew more tired and ready for an afternoon nap but the older 2 weren't showing any interest in leaving. Elliot had spent time playing with the twins for a little while, upon Olivia's encouragement as she'd tried to get Chloe into the pram to go to sleep. It had been quite a while since there had really been an occasion for Chloe to take a nap in the pram, but the little girl easily fell asleep to Olivia's rocking. She quite easily stayed asleep for the next hour or so too. This allowed for Olivia to easily get a coffee and by the time Elliot returned to find her, she had already ordered and paid for a coffee for him too. Olivia had also got the twins milkshakes – Chocolate was a big favourite with the Stablers.

"How did you know my coffee order?" Elliot asked, as he sat down next to Olivia.  
"I've got a good memory, we've been for coffee a couple of times now and that's enough for me to know" Olivia remarked as Elliot took a sip of his coffee.  
"You definitely got it right, so well done. Now how much do I owe you?" Elliot asked, taking out his wallet from his pocket to give the change to Olivia.  
"Nothing" Olivia replied, with a smile.  
"Liv…" Elliot tried to bargain but Olivia was not having it.  
"No, I said today was my treat"  
"Well you still deserve some kind of repayment"  
"Oh yeah? What did you have in mind?" Olivia teased, leaning that little bit closer to Elliot, knowing exactly what he was thinking.  
"Well…Seeing as the twins are off playing and Chloe's out cold…" Elliot said as he placed a soft kiss on Olivia's lips. Elliot had been wanting to do that since he saw her outside her apartment building this morning. But he knew there was no way she'd let him with the twins around.  
"Consider your debt payed" Olivia smiled as they pulled back.

"So, I heard from my lawyer this morning" Olivia spoke up, after a few minutes of silence, just enjoying each other's company and taking in the atmosphere.  
"Oh yeah?' Elliot was intrigued as to what the lawyer had been calling about  
"My court date has been set with Brian…19th of November"  
"That's…a week on Thursday…I'll make sure to take the day off" Elliot remarked, he knew the date as he had an important conference the beginning of that week"  
"You don-" Olivia tried to argue but Elliot just shook his head.  
"We said that we'd get through this together and I meant it, I'm coming with you" Elliot explained, placing a hand on Olivia's knee and looking her straight in the eye. Olivia had to admit, his hand on her knee gave her a nice feeling, especially to go with the message he was giving her – he wasn't going anywhere, they would do this together.  
"Alright, thank you"  
"Of course! I'm not letting that man anywhere near you or Chloe. I'm also not just going to sit by and let someone, who did all those horrible things, try and get custody for a child he never wanted" Elliot replied as Olivia just smiled, she was really glad to have someone like this by her side. Whilst everything between them may have started in the worst scenario, she wouldn't change anything for what she had with Elliot now.

_**A/N: What did you think? Let me know by leaving a review!  
Until Next Time ;)**_


	37. Preparation for Court Pt 1

**37\. Preparation for Court Pt. 1**

The remainder of the afternoon at the play centre with Elliot and the twins was very enjoyable. Olivia loved watching Chloe and Elizabeth play together, they just got on so well together. Richard had Chloe in absolute tears of laughter, playing with her favourite stuffed animal, a monkey, and hiding it in different areas of the stroller before making it jump out at her. Olivia almost didn't want to have to separate them all, when it was time to go. Elliot held her hand in his for the entire car ride home, they had spent a lot of time discussing the following week and what it would entail for them. Olivia still didn't completely understand why Elliot wanted to take the day off work to come to the court house with her, but she appreciated the gesture none the less. Elliot had even expressed the interest to come to the next meeting with her lawyer, if she wanted him there. He'd said this as he really meant what he had previously told her, he would be there for her every step of the way through this. Olivia couldn't quite believe how lucky she was that she'd found such an incredible man who was willing to support her all the way through this. She'd really go lucky with Elliot.

Olivia didn't feel ready for what was likely to come over the next week or so and she knew that she would have many sleepless nights because of this. But with Elliot around to help, she knew that things would turn out alright and she wasn't completely alone in all of this. She knew that in the time that remained before the court case and possibly having to let Chloe meet Brian, it was important not to let on to the little girl that things were changing. It was going to be important that they keep the same schedule and that they keep things calm. Olivia knew just how easily Chloe can sense change and the last thing she wanted right now, was for the little girl to get thrown off by the change.

She had a meeting scheduled with her lawyer for Wednesday afternoon and he was apparently going to call her earlier in the week if this meeting with Brian and Chloe was still required. So, Olivia found herself constantly looking at her phone throughout the remainder of the weekend and into the week, almost expecting there to be a call. But by Tuesday, Olivia still hadn't heard anything from Lewis and that made her feel like Chloe wouldn't have to meet Brian and things would be alright. She had spoken with Elliot on Monday afternoon who told her that he had his legal team also looking into the matter, and he'd let her know if they found something. Olivia felt a big sense of comfort knowing two legal teams were working on the case and she was grateful that Elliot had been so eager to help when he could like this.

* * *

Tuesday morning had been an early start for Elliot, as he'd received a call from his legal advisor first thing, about Olivia's case. They'd been working tirelessly on the case since he'd first asked for them to do so last Friday but finally managed to find a possible loophole. The order of Protection that Olivia had, meant that she and Brian could not be within 100 yards of each other. So, in the family court case, given that Brian is still in prison, he would have to attend via video link, as he couldn't be in the room with Olivia. But this also meant that there was a complication in term of him meeting Chloe. Olivia was unable to take Chloe to Brian and Chloe was simply too young to be with someone she wasn't familiar with. As far as Elliot was aware, Olivia didn't have any family in town either. So, if there was no one suitable to take Chloe to Brian then the meeting simply couldn't go ahead. Only certain people can have access to meetings with prisoners and only certain people would be able to be with Chloe – and the two types of 'certain people' wouldn't overlap.

Elliot just couldn't help but smile at the news, luck was definitely in his favour today and he just had to deliver this information to Olivia in person. He knew his mother wouldn't object to him dropping the twins off to school today, she would enjoy another sleep in. Them tomorrow afternoon, when Elliot went with Olivia to see her lawyer, Elliot had already arranged for the twins to have play dates with a few friends from school, whilst his mother would spend a day at the spa. Elliot was doing all of this organisation in a hope to avoid having to deal with his mother's questions about what he was getting up to and where he was going all the time. He knew that conversation would have to come at some stage, he couldn't just keep putting it off from his mother, but that conversation didn't have to happen today.

Elliot successfully managed to get the twins out of the door for school earlier than intended, which gave him time to stop at the coffee shop on the way and grab coffee, both for himself and Olivia. He didn't want to turn up empty handed to give Olivia the good news, or at least the news he hoped that she found good, as he certainly did.

* * *

Olivia was at school earlier than usual today, partly due to the fact that she'd woken up earlier than usual this morning and hadn't taken Chloe to daycare like usual. The little girl was seeming a little unsettled and under the weather, so Olivia felt it would be better to keep her home with Lucy today, and see how things go. It was clear that this was going to be a big time of change and this would have an impact on Chloe, despite Olivia's attempts to shield that little girl. But being at school early had it's positives, it meant that she could finish up on a few reports that she still had to get done about students in her class, who required extra assistance in their learning. She also had to organise the cover work for her class next week, as she wouldn't be here. Olivia had booked the cover teacher for most of the week, as she really wasn't sure how much time she was going to be able to be in the classroom.

Olivia knew she had to be in court on Thursday and likely wouldn't be in the right head space to teach on Wednesday because of the court case. Then if Chloe was going to have to see Brian on Tuesday, there was no way that Olivia could be in the classroom and focused on her students like she needed to be, with what would be going on. Ideally, Olivia would be at school on Monday and Friday but even then, Friday would simply depend on how Thursday goes, Olivia may not be in the right headspace to teach on Friday.

Olivia knew the school was behind her through all of this though and her supervisor, the deputy principal, had been very supportive in her time off next week. Thankfully, Olivia did have a very good reputation and the school knew she wasn't one to take time off unless she really had to. It didn't make things any easier though.

* * *

Olivia had just finished marking the last of her spelling assessments that she had done the previous day, when she saw someone standing in the doorway to her classroom, out of her peripheral vision. She looked up and saw that it was Elliot, which the thought of alone, brought a smile to her face.  
"Good morning" Elliot greeted as he made his way into the classroom. He'd been standing in the doorway, just watching her work and he thought she'd looked beautiful so deeply concentrating on something.  
"Morning, where are the kids?" Olivia asked, not that she wasn't happy to see Elliot. She just wasn't used to it only being him coming into the classroom – usually he was accompanied by his twins.  
"Outside, with their friends. Where's Clara?" Elliot asked as he looked around the room for the other teacher who was normally in the room.  
"Not coming in today, she has a day at the university as part of her placement program. It's a kind of catch up day with theory after being in the classroom for a while" Olivia explained.  
"Right. Well, this is for you" Elliot said as he handed Olivia a coffee, feeling a little less awkward now he knew Clara wasn't here as he didn't bring her one.  
"You're bringing me coffee now? I could get used to this" Olivia teased as she graciously accepted the drink.  
"Well…I figured, you're putting up with my daughter all day, and I didn't want to turn up empty handed with good news like this"  
"Elizabeth is a delight to teach, and you know that. But I never turn a cup of coffee down and what's this good news you speak of?" Olivia asked, as she took a sip of coffee and Elliot pulled over a chair to next ot her desk. Elliot had managed to get her order just right and she was very impressed by this. Elliot proceeded to tell Olivia the news he had discovered from his lawyers this morning and he couldn't hide the smile at the look of relief that erupted on Olivia's face as she processed the news.

"So, Chloe won't have to see Brian?" Olivia clarified as she processed the news Elliot had given her.  
"Nope, according to my legal team, your order of protection prevents that and I'm sure you're lawyer will say the same thing tomorrow. But I knew that as soon as I heard, I just had to tell you" Elliot explained.  
"Thank you" Olivia smiled.  
"You know you don't need to thank me after everything I do, right?" Elliot asked..  
"I know, but it's polite and I'm showing my gratitude for it as not many other men would do what you have done already for me"  
"Well…I'm not like other men"  
"That's true"  
"Now, I have to go but I'll pick you up from here tomorrow afternoon before our meeting with Lewis. My kids have respective play dates as their friends places, so we don't have to worry about them" Elliot said as he stood up and put the chair back at the desk before fixing his suit jacket a little.  
"Just…come with me for a moment" Olivia said before guiding Elliot into her storage closet behind her desk and he was confused for a moment. But as soon as Olivia placed her lips over his in a soft kiss, he understood and couldn't help but smile. He refrained from wrapping his arms around her waist but he wanted to. _Not in a professional location _Elliot reprimanded himself.  
"Thank you for the coffee, and the news" Olivia said as they pulled back  
"If that's the kind of thank you I get, then….I'm going to start bringing you coffee more often" Elliot smiled as the pair walked towards the door of the classroom.  
"I love you, have a good day" Olivia bid Elliot farewell.  
"You too" Elliot replied, as he gave her a quick wink before leaving the classroom once more whilst Olivia just shook her head with a smile. She couldn't believe what this man was doing to her.

* * *

"Who's the special guy?" and asked as she stood next to Olivia on the playground, waiting for their classes to line up.  
"I'm sorry?" Olivia clarified as she looked over to the woman. She was a little taken back by the questions and quickly trying to think on her feet.  
"Someone brought you coffee this morning, who was it?" Many clarified. Olivia was not sure quite how she had been caught out like this but she had to think of a response quickly to get out of this situation.  
"How do you know that I didn't just pop out and grab a coffee before school started?" Olivia denied.  
"I walked past your classroom several times this morning and I've not seen you leave once, yet you had a takeaway coffee cup on your desk and you didn't have that early on. So who's the special guy?" Mandy continued to ask.  
"A friend, who was in the neighbourhood, and knew I was at school already so they dropped by and brought me coffee. I had a rough night with Chloe and needed it" Olivia explained.  
"Mmhmm, sure. Ok we'll go with that. But if you have parents bringing you coffee – there is a line that has been crossed"  
"It wasn't a parent" Olivia lied. Elliot may be a parent but he's also so much more but Olivia wasn't going to let Mandy in on that yet.  
"Whatever you say" Mandy teased as she lead her class away for the day, several of her students greeted Olivia in the process as they passed. Olivia had to admit she was a little worried now, had they been found out? Were there signs now that something more serious was happening? She thought that she had been so private with everything to do with Elliot but clearly that wasn't the case if she was getting questioned about coffee now.

Though maybe this was a sign, maybe she and Elliot needed to have a conversation about what the next steps for them were and she needed to think about what the possible consequences of those next steps might be. She knew that no healthy relationship was supposed to be secret all the time, she knew that whilst Elliot had been so understanding of her wanting to keep things on the secret side, she knew there would come a time where that wouldn't work anymore. If Olivia wanted to keep Elliot forever, like she did, then things would have to change. That time might jut becoming sooner rather than later and Olivia knew she would have to work out what ways in things changing she would be comfortable with right now and that they could make work. She didn't want to change too many things with how good things felt with Elliot right now, but she couldn't keep this relationship secret forever.

_**A/N: Thoughts? **  
**Until Next Time ;)**_


	38. Preparation for Court Pt 2

**38\. Preparation for Court Pt. 2**

Waiting rooms outside of lawyer offices smelt strange. It was somewhere that Elliot had to admit, he hadn't been very often. But sitting here now, with Olivia, he could notice a distinct smell in the air. Despite having to deal with legal matters from time to time, considering he runs a business, Elliot never found himself in legal offices – his legal team always came to him. But here he was now, sitting next to Olivia and gazing off into space thinking about things, and this was an interesting experience for him. Elliot was glad that he came though, he was glad that Olivia had agreed to have him come with her for this.

"Olivia?" A man appeared at the doorway in front of where they were sitting. Both Olivia and Elliot stood up and Elliot knew this had to be her lawyer. The man stood to the side of the doorway and invited the pair inside, before closing the door again, providing privacy for their meeting.  
"Lewis, this is Elliot, my partner. Elliot, this is my lawyer Lewis" Olivia was quick to introduce the pair and Elliot had to admit, hearing her say "partner" was a nice experience. It was the first time that he'd heard her call him her partner and he liked it.  
"Nice to meet you" Lewis smiled as he extended his hand to shake.  
"You too" Elliot returned the gesture before taking the seat next to Olivia. He subconsciously reached for her hand across the arm rest and gave it a small squeeze when she took his. Olivia just smiled back/  
"Alright, so…there have been a few updates that we need to discuss, especially in preparation for next week" Lewis started as he glanced down at the notes on his desk. Olivia took a deep breath, hoping the news Lewis was about to give her was just as good as what Elliot had told her yesterday.

Olivia listened closely as Lewis explained how given there is an order of protection in play, Brian wouldn't be in the court room but he would be tuning in through video link. Lewis explained that Brian would be able to see her but he could not have any proper interaction with her. He would really only be in attendance via video link due to the case being his claim to custody. Lewis continued to explain how he had managed to get the request for visitation with Chloe thrown out, which was a huge relief to Olivia. Although she'd already known this as Elliot told her, it was nice to hear it from her lawyer as well, to know it was real. They would meet again the day before court, to go over how everything is going to go, just so Olivia was familiar with the layout and everything. But Lewis had to admit he was feeling confident on how this was all going to go. He had even explained he was feeling pretty confident in terms of winning the case in court and Chloe never having to know who Brian was unless she wanted to when she was older. But Olivia was still on the fence, she had this feeling that Brian was going to pull something out at the last minute and things were not going to go as planned.

Elliot remained quiet during most of the meeting but he had been making mental notes of things to get his team to look into and different things to ask them. He didn't necessarily, not trust this lawyer, as the guy seemed to be doing things well so far. Elliot just wanted to make sure that there was nothing else this lawyer could possibly miss and where he had to get more information, Elliot was going to. He was going to get his team to look into the chances of winning this case next week, and whether there were any other little things that Brain could use to his advantage in the case. He also wanted more information on what the possible outcomes for the case could be, he knew that Lewis was adamant they were going to win, Elliot just wanted to be prepared for all outcomes.

"What are we looking at if we don't get a victory though? What are the possible outcomes here?" Elliot asked, verbalizing what he was thinking as Olivia looked over at him. She knew he was just trying to get the whole picture and she had to admit she wanted to know as well. Elliot wanted to get Lewis's perspective on the possible outcomes before he approached his team, so he could see if things matched up.  
"Well, there are three possible ways this could go and before I tell you them, I want to confirm that I'm confident that when we go to court next week, we will get the best outcome. Now, the first outcome is that we win the case completely, Olivia remains the sole custodian of Chloe and things just carry on the way they have been. The second outcome, is that we partially win the case, Brian doesn't get custody or maybe partial custody but he does get allocated visitation and permission to see his daughter. Olivia is not around when this happens, Chloe would go with an court appointed guardian to these visits every time" Lewis explained and Elliot looked over to Olivia who had gone white in the face, he could tell she was scared for that outcome.  
"The final outcome, is that Brian wins the case and is given sole custody of Chloe, but not until he is out of prison. Now that, I've heard could be sooner rather than later as he has a parole hearing coming up" Lewis concluded.  
"Bri-He could get out?" Olivia asked, suddenly rather scared for what she was hearing.  
"Maybe, but let's not think about that too much right now, our main concern here is this case next week and I just want to reiterate, that I don't see either of the last 2 results happening. I believe with everything you've told me and we've worked through – you have a strong case" Lewis tried to encourage but Olivia felt sick to her stomach. She didn't trust that this was all going to go very well in her favour, she knew the charm Brian could just turn on when he needed to.

* * *

Olivia's meeting with Lewis had brought up a lot, as they always seemed to do. She had honestly never thought about the possibility that Brian could get out of prison or that it could be soon. But of course he could, as he'd probably had the perfect behaviour in his time in prison and no-one would believe anything different or what he'd even been convicted for that put him away. Olivia knew otherwise though, and she hoped that if the day did come that Brian would be walking free, he would just leave her alone. Olivia was building a life now with Elliot, and it was the kind of life that she was sure could be ruined in an instant if Brian decided to take a stand, which was always a worry of hers. Olivia loved Elliot and while she knew that he knew everything about her past now and loved her regardless, Olivia still worried that Brian could do something to ruin this all.

After their meeting with Lewis was over, Elliot and Olivia took a stroll to a small café, a couple of blocks down the street. It was one Olivia had been to a couple of times before and quite liked. Elliot placed their order at the counter, whilst Olivia found them a table. Elliot could tell on the walk to café that Olivia was lost in her thoughts after the meeting with Lewis. He took a seat opposite her and she smiled softly at him as he grabbed her hand in his. They were out of the immediate area of the school or where anyone might know them, so Elliot was prepared to do subtle PDA with her.

"Sorry, miles away there" Olivia apologised as she just smiled at Elliot.  
"That's ok, I know things said in that meeting would have brought up some things" Elliot tried to comfort.  
"It did, but it sounds somewhat positive and I'm glad you were there. I'm also glad that Chloe doesn't have to go and see Brian" Olivia breathed a huge sigh of relief.  
"She never will either, if we have anything to do with it" Elliot encouraged. He was going to do anything that he could to make sure that Brian never made it anywhere near his girls and he meant it. Olivia and Chloe were his girls now and he was going to do anything in the world to protect them.

"So, I was thinking…When the court case is over, we should get away" Elliot suggested once the coffees had arrived.  
"Are you forgetting we have another court case?" Olivia raised an eyebrow.  
"I know, but we don't know when that will be just yet and I think after all of this drama so far, when the case with Brian is over, we should take the kids and get away from the city for a little while. I have a beautiful lake house, a couple of hours north from here and I have already promised the twins that we'll go sometime soon. So, after this case, why don't we all escape to there for a little while?" Elliot suggested.  
"That sounds wonderful, but I think we should wait till we've got through both cases first. I agree that we should do something celebratory for getting through this case with Brian – as I want to celebrate when we do. But I just think we need to leave your big getaway, to when we've done both and we can really celebrate" Olivia explained. This wasn't a no answer, it was quite simply a 'lets wait to have a bigger celebration'.  
"I like your thinking…But you and I are still going to do something to celebrate when Brian is done and dusted with" Elliot confirmed. He wasn't entirely sure what they would do just et, but he was going to do something to celebrate this occasion and finally having her past out of her life. Elliot knew that Olivia would always have a part of her past with her, but that was the best part – as it was Choe. But he was ready to move forward and forget about Brian or that he ever existed, they could properly start being together.

_**A/N: Don't worry, I've got something planned already for when the case is all over and done with, our favourite couple are going to celebrate in quite the style. But let me know what you think that might be or what you want it to be? Also let me know what you thought of this chapter? I apologise for the delay in updates, I've had this chapter ready to go for a while, but my house has been without internet for 2 weeks and we only recently got it back. I'm on holidays now, so hopefully with the internet back, I can update again soon with the next chapter – the next few chapters are going to be quite interesting, so strap yourselves in!**_

_**Leave me a review and let me know what you thought of this chapter? I love to read them all and I love you all.  
Until Next Time ;)**_


End file.
